Leeds player ratings - Leeds 5 - 1 Newport

After a very poor first half, Leeds United produced a confident display in the second, led by Kemar Roofe, to put League Two Newport County to the sword. 5-1 certainly flattered Leeds but in the end the result was comfortable.

Time now to look at each player and how they performed. As always you can tell me how wrong I am @mightywhitespod or @ThruItAllLUFC on twitter.

STARTING LINE-UP

Rob Green - Made one good save in each half but mistakes by goalkeepers are always the most crucial and are held against them. Joss Labadie’s strike was not a particularly hard one to deal with and Green fumbling the ball past himself and into the goal put Leeds into what could have been a very difficult situation for the team. Distribution wasn’t terrible but not as good as that of Wiedwald. 5/10

Vernon Anita - While Newport’s wingers look good for League Two, Anita should be disappointed with how easily they constantly got behind him. Gave the ball away far too much as well as getting dragged out of position a lot. In the second half was clearly injured but kept playing for far too long which goes down against both him and our medical staff on the night. He is an experienced player and should know better. However, he did make one very important clearance off the line which pulls his rating up a little. An off night for the Dutchman. 4.5/10

Conor Shaughnessy - Not a great day for our defenders combined to be honest. Shaughnessy got knocked about a bit too much and wasn’t great in possession. Looked a long way away from his terrific performance against Fulham. 5.5/10

Luke Ayling - Struggled a bit while at centre-back and would have got a lower score had he stayed there all match. Had similar issues to Anita once moved to right-back (although not with the same frequency) but was much better than Anita going forward as you would expect. Managed to get involved in Roofe’s 2nd and 3rd goals. Overall, maybe his poorest game of the season and he still was decent enough. 6.5/10

Cameron Borthwick-Jackson - Was unable to get forward as frequently as in his previous appearances due to Newport having pace on the flanks for counter attacks. Dealt with the danger far better than Anita on the other side. Made one big mistake which allowed Newport to go through on goal in the second half. A bit sloppy in possession but not our worst offender in that regard. 5/10

Mateusz Klich - Would definitely have hoped to make more of an impact. With his experience he should be able to dictate in a game like this and didn’t really do it until Leeds had already sealed the tie. Newport players were able to get wrong side of him too much (goes against him and Vieira). Wasn’t that bad, but will need to do a lot more if he wants to play his way into the starting XI. 5.5/10

Ronaldo Vieira - Poor in possession by his standards (something of a theme) and got caught ahead of the ball a bit too much. Was better in the second half and in the end did well to grab himself a goal. He got better as the team got better. 6.5/10

Madger Gomes - One of the better performers on the night. Him and Roofe were our best players in the first half and Gomes certainly looked a threat. Couple of good efforts on goal as well as showing some pace and trickery. Will be happy with his nights work and, as I have a feeling Hadi Sacko will go out on loan in this window, could well see more first team action going forward. 7/10

Eoghan Stokes - People who have seen more u23 football than me have said good things about Stokes but he didn’t show much in this game. A few nice touches but didn’t look to have enough strength in or out of possession and some his passing was not very good at all (this was true of the whole team to be fair to him). 5/10

Stuart Dallas - An experienced head who stood up to be counted in this match. Wasn’t good in the first half when no-one really was but in the second half he looked a threat whenever he was on the ball. Contributed a lot in the final third with some especially good work for the second goal. After this performance and his goal against Sunderland, would definitely start against Nottingham Forest for me. 8/10

Kemar Roofe - On a night where Leeds were not playing well Kemar Roofe was the man who showed his class. Played ok in the first half when most didn’t and in the second half looked every bit a player from two leagues above the opposition. Scored a fine hat-trick, the third goal was a fantastic finish with the cross coming behind him, and could have had a fourth with a deft chip that hit the crossbar. A fine night of work that shows he can certainly play as the focal point of the side in the lone striker role. 9/10

SUBSTITUTES

Liam Cooper (for Anita, 60mins) - The defence looked far better with him involved. Allowed Ayling to shift to right-back in place of the poor Anita. Wasn’t easy for him, especially up against Franck Nouble who looked like he will do very well for Newport this season.

Samuel Saiz (for Stokes, 66mins) - A class apart, looked like a 17 year old playing against 10 year olds. Took his goal brilliantly, saw passes nobody else did, moved past defenders with ease. Newport fans can be pleased that they don’t have to face anyone like him very often. Only a cameo, but a great one. 8.5/10

Ezgjan Alioksi (for Roofe, 75mins) - Replaced the excellent Roofe after the game was done. Looked far too good for the opposition but wasn’t nearly as involved as Saiz. Had a good free-kick saved. Did well. 7/10

Overall, our attacking players far outshone our defensive and midfield players. Newport should do a lot better than they did last season on this evidence. A 5-1 defeat was very harsh on them. On to a massive game away at Nottingham Forest.