Leeds United transfer target commands hefty salary, player ratings from FA Cup defeat - key headlines

Player ratings from West Ham loss

Leeds were knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round yesterday, falling to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of West Ham at the London Stadium.

Manuel Lanzini gave the home side a controversial lead in the 34th minute, poking the ball in from close range after a scramble in the box.

In a contentious ruling, the VAR deemed that Jarrod Bowen, who darted forward to prevent Illan Meslier collecting the ball, had not been offside in the build-up and that the goal would stand.

With Leeds piling forward to grab an equaliser in the dying minutes, it was Bowen who doubled the Irons' lead on the break in injury-time, assisted by Michail Antonio.

Young Whites Leo Hjelde and Lewis Bate were handed their first appearances for the senior team, while 19-year-old striker Sam Greenwood bagged his first start.

Here, Graham Smyth hands out ratings to Marcelo Bielsa's players.

Leeds United target commands huge weekly fee

The Whites will have to pay £150,000 a week to secure the services of Boubacar Kamara, the Sun reports.

The 22-year-old transfer target is hot property this January transfer window, with West Ham United, Newcastle United and Manchester United all said to interested in the Marseille player.

The Frenchman has scored one goal across 16 Ligue 1 appearances so far this season, and also boasts Europa League experience.

Click here to read today's transfer rumours.

Marcelo Bielsa on West Ham's first goal

The Whites head coach claimed he accepted the officials decision to allow Manuel Lanzini's opener to stand after Leeds' 2-0 defeat to West Ham yesterday.

VAR Peter Bankes, assisted by Lee Betts, spent some time reviewing the goal after Jarrod Bowen appeared to be offside in the build-up.

The ruling caused consternation among Whites fans and player, with captain Liam Cooper wading in on social media to express his frustration.

But Bielsa refused to be unbalanced by the officiating, instead offering a philosophical stance on the incident in his post-match press conference.

"It's a decision I prefer to accept what the referee's say, not because I don't have an opinion, I think it's a collaboration us coaches should make, to accept the decisions to the referees even if they jeopardise us," Bielsa said.

"If not we enter terrain where we can't offer what we want to offer, which is good football.

" There is a lot of arguments to say that the position I'm taking is incorrect, I consider them and I revise them but adding and subtracting I think the decision to accept their decisions helps their job and the spectacle."

Read the full story here.

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