Flashback: Leeds United's Davide Somma in spotlight as lights fail at Portsmouth in 2011

That’s more than could be said of the Fratton Park floodlights that failed twice during a 2-2 draw in which the Whites had to come from behind twice.

The match arrived at a delicate stage in what was a bizarre Leeds season. Sat handsomely in the play-off places, Simon Grayson’s side had recently put a run of 12 unbeaten games together, half of which were draws.

The lord mayor’s show had left a week earlier after Elland Road had played host to Arsenal in a 3-1 FA Cup replay defeat. The trip to Portsmouth had that feel, too, and Leeds started with little energy.

This was a Pompey side wallowing in the depths of a post-Premier League hangover. Still at the outset of their sorry descent to the fourth tier, their side was an unbalanced scramble of creaking former internationals and players operating above their level.

Although no trip to the south coast is easy, it was a game Leeds fancied. The hosts were just a few points from relegation, Leeds a win from the top spot. You’d have never known it half an hour in, when Portsmouth were one up through Joel Ward.

And that’s how they entered the break. Leeds were as tepid as they had been all season, with only the in-form Max Gradel showing any real desire to find the equaliser.

His performance was matched only by Kasper Schmeichel, who made a string of classy saves including one from an John Utaka strike that provided a rare first half highlight.

It is during these half-time team talks that managers make their money. Grayson’s approach wasn’t often tubthumping, but whatever he said to his players played a part in them drawing level within moments.

It wasn’t a classic goal. Jonny Howson, quickly becoming one of the most sought-after young midfielders in English football, sliced a free-kick across the penalty box to the feet of Luciano Becchio, who nudged it home for his 14th goal of the season.

Leeds’ improvement was noticeable if not enormous. The midfield four of Robert Snodgrass, Bradley Johnson, Howson and Gradel had played such a big part in their positive start to the season, but aside from an attack or two, their mojo had deserted them a touch.

That Becchio’s opposite man was an ageing Nwankwo Kanu was a microcosm of where Portsmouth were at the time. It was the former Internazionale man who made the difference in the lead up to Portsmouth’s second goal, nodding down to goalscorer Utaka after the hour mark.

The lead lasted seconds. Davide Somma arrived onto the field in place of Sanchez Watt and the South African hammered home a fine goal a minute later to send the away end into raptures.

Here was Leeds’ moment to kick on and they looked like doing so, launching a number of attacks of real promise. Their momentum was sapped when the Fratton Park floodlights conked out with 15 minutes to go and by the time they went for a second time 10 minutes later, the game had flattened out.

The match started a run of one defeat in 10 for the Whites who would of course miss out on the play-off places by three points. Where many point to a horror April during which the wheels came off their campaign, the fact is the side drew too many winnable games across the course of the season.

Their trip to Fratton Park was surely one.

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MATCH STATS: Championship, Saturday, January 22, 2011 – Portsmouth 2 (Ward 26, Utaka 61) Leeds United 2 (Becchio 47, Somma 63)

Portsmouth: Ashdown, Halford, Dickinson. De Laet (Rocha), Ward, Sonko, Lawrence, Mullins, Utaka, Nugent, Kanu. Subs not used: Flahavan, Hreidarsson, Ciftci, Kilbey.

Leeds United: Schmeichel, Connolly, Bruce, Bromby, McCartney, Gradel, Howson, Johnson, Snodgrass, Becchio, Watt (Somma 62).

Referee: Anthony Taylor. Attendance: 20,040.