'Leeds United are a fantastic team' - Frank Lampard delighted with Everton's victory over the Whites
Frank Lampard was overjoyed as Everton shut down a 'fantastic' Leeds United team en route to a comfortable 3-0 win.
The victory was Lampard's first Premier League win as Toffees manager and took his 16th-placed side to within a point of Leeds, with a game in hand.
"Absolutely delighted," said Lampard.
"From minute one right through the game against a really good team - Leeds are a fantastic team, everyone knows that, you saw it against Villa - we didn’t give them anything today even though they hit the crossbar. The workrate, quality play, so many opportunities created - I’m really happy. It’s only a start and I won’t get overexcited, but I can enjoy seeing my team play like that - it was everything we wanted."
Everton pressed with intensity against Leeds and stopped Marcelo Bielsa's men from playing in the first half in particular. With a 2-0 lead to their name, Everton had less of the ball in the second half but always looked comfortable before killing it off with a late third.
"Credit to the lads, defending is a team effort, it starts at the front," he said.
"We stayed compact. Leeds will always make you defend in your box. It’s good for the team to feel the confidence of a clean sheet, it’s a huge part of getting us where we want to be.
"It’s tough playing Leeds, you’ve got to do a lot of work off the ball. It’s important that everyone does their absolute maximum."
Lampard singled out Alex Iwobi for praise for a fine performance and was more than content with what he saw from January loan signing Donny van de Beek, a player who was offered to Leeds in the transfer window.
"I know Donny is a player," he said.
"We brought him for his talent, work ethic, he’s an intelligent player. He matched the other players’ performances, looked calm and confident on the ball, and that’s exactly what I brought him here to do."