Stephen Warnock has joked on Match of the Day that the celebration from Luke Ayling in Leeds United’s stunning win over Wolves on Friday was pathetic, but insisted that he loved it.
Ayling was Leeds’ hero at Molineux. Of course, at half-time, it appeared inevitable that Jesse Marsch’s men were heading for a heavy defeat.
They were 2-0 down. Patrick Bamford, Diego Llorente and Mateusz Klich all had to come off before the break. Klich was brought off as a concussion substitute, which allowed Leeds to make one more change.
However, that change then had to be used on Illan Meslier after his clash with Raul Jimenez in the early stages of the second-half. Jimenez was sent off, and the complexion of the game changed completely.
Leeds made the most of their advantage. And Ayling was at the heart of everything they did. He played a key role in the opening goal, and then played a delicious ball over the top for Dan James in the build-up to the visitors’ equaliser.
And there was to be one final twist in the tale. For the second Leeds game running, the visiting team found the back of the net just as the board revealed a lengthy spell of stoppage-time.
And it was Ayling who sent the away end into a frenzy. He smashed the ball past José Sá for the winner after some superb work at the back post.
‘Pathetic’: Ayling gets mixed reviews for goal celebration in Leeds win
Ayling has now scored eight goals for Leeds. And a memorable celebration has tended to follow each one. Most famously, he brought out the air guitar after scoring a stunning volley against Huddersfield.
This time, he attempted the cartwheel and forward roll synonymous with Robbie Keane. Unfortunately, he struggled to replicate Keane’s attempt, with a poorly-executed cartwheel almost injuring Robin Koch.
Leeds will not care one bit. And Warnock joked that he had very mixed feelings about the right-back’s celebration.
“Pathetic. I loved it because it was that bad, it made it great,” he told Match of the Day.