Leeds suffering ugly meltdown

UEFA CUP, Third round second leg/Leeds United ... ... 1 Malaga ... ... 2 (Malaga win 2-1 on aggregate): Leeds were squeezed out of the UEFA Cup on a night in which sorrow and self-pity entwined with spite and stupidity, one in which a fan was arrested after trying to confront Terry Venables and serious fears were raised about whether the career of Michael Bridges might be finished at the age of 24.

As if that were not enough, Lee Bowyer's magnetic attraction for controversy resurfaced with a stamp into an opponent's face that is certain to prompt a UEFA investigation, and Venables also had to contend with two of his players, Gary Kelly and Jason Wilcox, squaring up to each other in the second half.

Shortly afterwards Julio Dely Valdes tricked Jonathan Woodgate and volleyed in his second goal of a night that ended with more chants against Venables and might have serious repercussions, not just for the manager but several of his players.

Venables appeared totally unperturbed by the sight of a spectator appearing beside the dugout, though it needed three security guards to wrestle the man away. UEFA's delegates will have seen the incident from close range from their vantage point in the West Stand and it is likely that Leeds will be required to explain their security procedures.

Equally, Bowyer faces the possibility of a UEFA investigation for the unedifying tangle with Gerardo a minute after Malaga had taken the lead. His first hack at the Spaniard was callous enough, but when he raked his studs into his opponent's face a number of Malaga substitutes were so incensed that they encroached on the pitch.

Bowyer's offence merited a red card rather than the yellow flourished by Massimo Busacca, and the Leeds midfielder will be fortunate to avoid further repercussions.

For Venables, however, his main worry was for Bridges. Injuries have curtailed the career of one of English football's brightest attacking prospects and the sight of the striker collapsing to the floor, having apparently caught his studs in the turf and ruptured the Achilles tendon in his left leg, must prompt fears about his long-term future.

Bridges was given a standing ovation as he was taken down the tunnel on a stretcher, but the sad fact is that it might be the last time he is seen on a football field.

All these sub-plots could not disguise the fact that this was a far more entertaining match than the scoreless draw in Malaga a fortnight ago.

At first, it had seemed as though Leeds might bow out without so much as a whimper. Certainly when the Congo winger Kiki Musampa drifted beyond Danny Mills and crossed for Dario Silva's outstretched foot to divert the ball past Paul Robinson, a familiar air of foreboding descended over Elland Road.

Yet the Leeds response was swift and impressive and when, eight minutes later, Bridges' replacement Robbie Fowler hooked Jason Wilcox's centre back across goal for Eirik Bakke to score from close range, it precipitated a prolonged spell of pressure from the home side.

The football from both teams was laced with attacking enterprise, but there was an undercurrent of spite.

What Venables did not need was Kelly and Wilcox to get involved in a shoving match in the centre circle after arguing their respective roles on the left flank. Venables has complained about his side's poor fighting qualities, but this was no way to prove the manager wrong.

LEEDS: Robinson, Mills, Woodgate, Duberry, Kelly, Bowyer, Bakke, Okon, Wilcox, Smith, Bridges (Fowler 9). Subs Not Used: Martyn, Harte, Radebe, McPhail, Seth Johnson, Kilgallon. Booked: Bowyer, Smith.Goals: Bakke 23.

MALAGA: Contreras, Josemi, Fernando Sanz, Roteta, Valcarce, Manu (Sandro 57), Gerardo, Romero, Musampa (Miguel Angel 78), Silva, Dely Valdes (Litos 90). Subs Not Used: Arnau, Iznata, Leko, Koke. Booked: Gerardo, Valcarce, Silva, Fernando Sanz, Sandro. Goals: Dely Valdes 14, 80.

Referee: Massimo Busacca (Switzerland).