🔗 Share this article Man City Alleged of Rule-Bending in Tight Victory Over Leeds - Farke Leeds manager Daniel Farke believed Manchester City shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma simulated an knock in the second half of their top-flight encounter Leeds United head coach Daniel Farke has accused City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma of simulating a knock to "bend the rules" in their top-flight match at the Etihad Leeds got off to the poorest beginning with Phil Foden scoring within the opening 60 seconds, prior to Josko Gvardiol doubled the hosts' advantage ahead of the half-time break Second-Half Comeback Denied However, Leeds fought back after the break after a change of tactics and formation, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin netting straight away after the restart And with City visibly struggling to deal with the adjustments moments before Lukas Nmecha equalized, home goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma collapsed to get attention, allowing boss Pep Guardiola to call his players to the sideline and deliver new instructions in the two minutes play was stopped for "Everyone understands why he went down," Farke stated "This isn't the obvious issue. Why he went down it was obvious. It is within the bounds of the regulations. It is smart. If I like it? If it's in line with the sense of fair play? If it should be like this I will keep to myself. It is for the governing bodies to determine a resolution" Coach's Frustration "I questioned the fourth official at this point if you wish to take action. Our hands are tied" "Unless we educate our footballers in football what to do in terms of sportsmanship and fair play and whatever and if we simply try to exploit regulations and actually do a fake injury in order to do an additional team meeting, it is not what I approve of personally. But if it is allowed by the regulations I can't complain" Late Winner Phil Foden's injury-time decisive goal condemned Leeds to a sixth consecutive loss in seven Premier League matches to place them eighteenth in the division, with only bottom club Wolves having notched fewer Premier League goals this term Strategic Adjustments However, Daniel Farke, who has been criticised for a absence of boldness especially around substitutions, was nearly vindicated for a bold choice at the interval that nearly turned around their fortunes Speaking to BBC Match of the Day, Phil Foden, said that his side were only capable to reorganize following Pep Guardiola's sideline meeting with his squad "During the break we were in command. Second half they came out, pressed us a lot more aggressively, they deployed two up top and altered the setup a little bit," commented Foden "We genuinely had difficulty to gain control of the game. We assembled on the side of the field and changed a couple of aspects and it improved from there. That little break was crucial to make corrections" Positive Aspects for Leeds United The most recent time Leeds United lost four successive top-flight matches was in 2022-23, when their season ended with relegation Nevertheless, while Farke said that "their main feeling is frustration", their second period performance offered enough evidence to suggest they are capable of halting their current run and climbing back up the standings "To show such a performance should provide us lots of belief. If we demonstrate such determination and togetherness we have a great opportunity to earn the points," Farke added "We possessed the confidence before the match, during the game and following the game. Or else you can't respond with a showing like that. We have great togetherness and fighting spirit in the locker room" Pundit Opinion Commenting on BBC Radio 5 Live, former Celtic attacker Chris Sutton said: "Everyone anticipated it to be a comfortable win for Manchester City, but it has been anything but easy in this second half" "Leeds United can derive a lot from this performance with the way they have played in this second half" "Following that were Daniel Farke's adjustments, who is frequently questioned for not being as proactive as he ought to be. Dominic Calvert-Lewin was introduced and roughed up the City centre-backs" "It appeared like it could be a massive pivotal moment in Leeds United's season, but Manchester City found a bit of brilliance. They escaped with one this evening"