Leeds did not require proof that they had missed Patrick Bamford but they could welcome it when it arrived and Elland Road reverberated to the sound of his name. Sidelined since September, Bamford marked his return by sticking out his left knee and sending Leeds into raptures. His was a 95th-minute salvage
Job, leaving Leeds celebrating what, in several other respects, was a poor result and Brentford bemoaning what, in many ways, was a fine one.
It was a day of competing comebacks, from Bamford and Luke Ayling, from Brentford and Leeds. When the influential Raphinha swung in the last corner, Ayling, who had also missed Leeds’ previous 11 matches, supplied the flick-on and Bamford reacted. Marcelo Bielsa can be a byword for the beautiful game but he could savour the effectiveness of an ugly finish.