Leeds United booked their place in the FA Cup fourth round with a 3–1 win at Pride Park today, but they had to do it the hard way after a first-half penalty miss, a Derby opener against the run of play, and a noisy home crowd sensing an upset.
Daniel Farke rotated heavily following a demanding run of fixtures, yet his side still had enough control and quality to flip the tie with a blistering spell early in the second half before James Justin’s stoppage-time goal finally put it to bed.
Derby started with the kind of intensity you’d expect from a Championship side smelling a big scalp, with new signing Oscar Fraulo showing early flashes of clever passing and Ben Brereton Díaz testing Karl Darlow without truly stretching him. Once Leeds found their rhythm, the momentum swung decisively. Lukas Nmecha drove at Derby’s back line, Joel Piroe struck the post from a tight angle, and Jakob Widell Zetterström was soon in the spotlight, producing sharp saves as Leeds began to camp around the Derby box. The clearest opening arrived when Nmecha was played through, rounded the goalkeeper and went down under pressure—Anthony Taylor pointed to the spot, but Zetterström guessed correctly and saved Piroe’s penalty to keep the tie level.
That moment proved a turning point in the first half, because Derby responded almost immediately with the kind of punch that makes cup ties tilt. A scramble in the area ended with Brereton Díaz turning the ball home to give the Rams a 1–0 lead on 35 minutes, a goal that lifted the stadium and left Leeds with the familiar frustration of dominating without reward. Leeds kept pushing before the break—testing Zetterström again through Gnonto and Okafor—but Derby carried their advantage into half-time.
Leeds’ answer after the restart was emphatic. Within 10 minutes they had not only levelled, but taken full control of the tie. The equaliser was the standout moment of the afternoon: the ball was worked to the edge of the area, Piroe cleverly stepped over it, and Wilfried Gnonto smashed a first-time strike high into the net for his first goal of the season. Four minutes later the turnaround was complete. Piroe’s low drive was saved, but Ao Tanaka reacted quickest to the rebound from close range to make it 2–1 and leave Derby suddenly chasing a game that had been in their hands.
Derby tried to respond with changes, fresh legs and a bit more direct play, and there were moments where the tie still felt uneasy—particularly when deliveries into the box asked questions and Leeds couldn’t quite kill the game off. Eustace also used the occasion to spread minutes around, including a debut appearance for academy midfielder Owen Eames, while Lewis Travis and David Ozoh were managed back towards fitness. But as Derby pushed up, space opened behind them, and Leeds exploited it late on. In stoppage time, a counterattack released Nmecha, whose outside-of-the-boot pass found Justin arriving to finish calmly for 3–1, sparking loud celebrations from a travelling support of over 5,000. The attendance at Pride Park was 21,741.
After the match, Farke praised his players for keeping their composure when the game threatened to slip away, pointing to the volume of first-half chances, the disappointment of the missed penalty, and the calmness his side showed to regroup and win it with “excellent” second-half goals. He also noted Leeds needed time to adjust to Derby’s early aggression and intensity, but felt his team’s control from that point deserved the outcome.
Derby head coach John Eustace struck a proud-but-frustrated tone. He felt his side went “toe-to-toe” with top-flight opposition in the first half and competed well, but admitted they ran out of legs as Leeds upped the pace after the interval. While disappointed to go out, he highlighted “loads of positives,” including strong minutes for players returning from injury and encouraging debuts for Fraulo and Eames, as Derby turn their focus back to a demanding league schedule.
