Kalvin Phillips insists Leeds United won't take Fulham defeat to heart with all eyes on Preston

Leeds United host Preston North End at Elland Road on Boxing Day
Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips. (Getty)Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips. (Getty)
Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips. (Getty)

Kalvin Phillips says Leeds United won’t take defeat at Fulham to heart as the Whites look to bounce back against Preston North End on Boxing Day.

Marcelo Bielsa saw his sides 11-game unbeaten run come to an end in the capital as the Cottagers earned a 2-1 victory on Saturday afternoon.

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The defeat, though, was met with controversy after Ben White was adjudged to have pushed Bobby Reid to the floor inside the six-yard box on seven minutes.

Referee Tim Robinson deemed the incident worthy of a penalty - despite replays showing minimal contact between the pair - with Aleksandar Mitrovic converting from 12-yards.

Former Premier League match official Dermot Gallagher later agreed with United’s protests: “It’s not a penalty. I think he feels the slightest touch in the back and goes down. I think the referee has misread it.

“He gives a penalty because he thinks he shoves him in the back, but there’s not enough there.”

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Leeds striker Patrick Bamford took his tally to 10 for the season afer he levelled the clash following the break before Josh Onomah secured all three points for Scott Parker’s men.

Bielsa’s outfit are now preparing for a festive clash against Alex Neil’s Preston team as they welcome the Lilywhites to Elland Road on Boxing Day.

United played out a 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture at Deepdale in late October thanks to a late Eddie Nketiah strike.

Leeds now hold the final automatic promotion spot in the Championship ahead of the clash, nine points ahead of their counterparts in fifth.

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Whites midfielder Kalvin Phillips, though, believes his team-mates won’t dwell on the controversial defeat at Craven Cottage, with focus now firmly on beating North End in LS11.

“We deserved a point at least in the game and possibly three points with the way we attacked,” Phillips admitted.

“We won’t take this defeat to heart too much though. We did all that we could to try and get at least a point.

“But we’re looking forward to the next game now and hopefully we can start another good run.”