Leeds United YEP Jury: Three points is three welcome points but we’re relying too much on Raphinha

But, on the back of that, some fear that the Whites might be relying too much on the talismanic Brazilian.

Here’s what they have to say; see if you agree:

Jacob Starr

A win was the only thing that mattered and a win is what we got at Carrow Road, despite a pretty disjointed performance, particularly in attacking.

Norwich are, quite frankly, awful and require some sort of miracle if they are going to avoid relegation. We would have been in serious trouble had we not got the three points. The first half was littered with niggly fouls and free kicks, with underwhelming final-third passes and little goalmouth action.

A bit of magic from Raphinha was needed to break the deadlock when he skipped past the Norwich defence and netted his fourth of the campaign. A mix-up at the back saw the Canaries score from a corner less than two minutes later. Another two minutes followed then the Whites were back in front via Tim Krul failing to keep out Rodrigo’s shot from distance.

A manic four-minute period that probably caught everyone off guard following the first half.

Total reliance can’t be placed on Raphinha or opposition mistakes, though, which is what seems to be the case at the moment.

It doesn’t take a genius to work out we’re missing Patrick Bamford massively.

With Rodrigo playing in a deep role, our attack is lacking a focal point so the sooner Bamford returns from injury the better.

Man of the match: Raphinha.

Andy Rhodes

Phew, I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief after that one.

For 45 minutes, Leeds looked flat and out of ideas but, for the other 45, they looked a side transformed.

It really could have gone either way but perhaps luck was on United’s side. When Leeds conceded the equaliser, it looked typical of a side on a poor run of form.

But, in Raphinha, Leeds have a player capable of opening up defences and changing games. His goal was a moment of individual quality while the second was equally good from Rodrigo.

Without Patrick Bamford though, United look like they miss a focal point up front at times. But, when Leeds get the ball down and play, they can open up any side.

If Norwich had any quality about them, Leeds might have lost this one – it was by no means a convincing display at all.

But, when push comes to shove, three points are three points and they are safely in the bag.

Man of the match: Raphinha.

Keith Ingham

Leeds gained their first win on the road to sink winless Norwich City. Goals from Raphinha and Rodrigo were enough but this was far from the team that looked so impressive last season but I’ll take it and we needed the three points.

The first half, as in most games, saw the effort but the application was again poor. The game came to life in the second half in eight minutes, Leeds’ quality coming to the fore with Raphinha once again the star of the show. His goal was class as he brought the ball across the penalty area before sitting at least one defender on his backside and hitting a shot that deflected off Krul and into the net.

You’d have thought it would spur Leeds on but a mix-up gifted City a corner. It was Norwich debutant Omobamidele who headed City level, the young defender totally unmarked as he headed past Meslier.

But 1-1 became 2-1 to Leeds two minutes later. Kalvin Phillips capitalised on a mistake and found Rodrigo, who hit a speculative shot from 25 yards out that went through Krul’s hands.

Not a classic by any means but, with a tough-looking December around the corner, points gained in October and November could be all important.

Needless to say, Raphinha was the best player for Leeds because he usually is and, without his skills, we might not have been celebrating a win.

Man of the match: Raphinha, different gravy.

Mike Gill

Might win, may win, must win.

A strange game where United failed to dominate or take their chances in the first half, Dan James coming closest. Early in the second half, the game was decided in a blistering four-minute period. At last, on 56 minutes, the game came to life with a fine individual effort from Raphinha who stood head and shoulders above anyone on the pitch.

Two minutes later, an uncharacteristic gaffe from Illan Meslier conceded an unnecessary corner which led to a headed equaliser from Omobamidele. Without being uncharitable, the free gift of a set-piece was the only way that the Canaries were going to score. Only two minutes later, justice was done and United retook the lead thanks to Rodrigo who seemed even more delighted than when he scored his penalty against Wolves. The end was far more nervy than it should have been but, importantly, three precious points were added to United’s tally.

Great relief all round and a deserved win for the Whites.

Man of the match: Raphinha.

David Watkins

The only thing that was important was that we won the game.

To have lost this one would have seriously undermined most fans’ belief that “there are at least three teams worse than us!”.

I think we can now categorically state that there is at least one team worse than Leeds. Norwich are a poor side and the fact they were still level after a dour first half of few clear-cut chances was a cause for concern.

Step up our dynamic duo of Raphinha and Rodrigo early in the second half with goals either side of a Norwich equaliser, a towering header following a needless corner being given away by a momentarily sloppy Leeds defence.

Sometimes this was a hard slog and several players still looked under par compared with their efforts of last season but, overall, Leeds had more quality on the pitch with Raphinha once again a spark that always looked likely to ignite us.

So, a potential banana skin has been avoided and, hopefully, this win and the tremendous final half hour we saw against Wolves will be a platform we can build on.

Man of the match: Raphinha.