Leeds scrap their way to precious point despite Crystal Palace’s late push

If avoiding relegation is about rolling sleeves up and fighting for everything then, on this evidence, Leeds should just about make it.

A second successive clean sheet on the road earned Jesse Marsch’s side a point that could prove priceless in a few weeks. It was definitely not pretty on a night when tempers were frayed on both sides, though with Palace having now moved within sight of securing their Premier League status for another season there was no reason for Patrick Vieira to complain other than perhaps a below-par performance of the referee.

Sixteen days had passed since Leeds defeated Watford in their last match but Burnley’s resurgence since sacking Sean Dyche meant that this was an opportunity to avoid being dragged into a relegation battle. At least Marsch was able to name Kalvin Phillips in his starting lineup for the first time, with the England midfielder making a return from a hamstring injury sustained in December.

The absence of Phillips has certainly not helped Leeds’s predicament, although Marsch’s return of 10 points from six games since taking over from Marcelo Bielsa at the end of February has eased some of the pressure.

The American shared a warm embrace with Vieira before kick-off having locked horns with the Palace manager while in charge of New York Red Bulls and New York City FC respectively in MLS, although he probably didn’t mention that the last two meetings ended in 4-0 victories for Marsch.

Palace seemed determined to make amends for a disappointing run of three defeats that included the FA Cup semi-final loss to Chelsea, having put seven goals without reply past Arsenal and Everton in their last two matches here. Jean-Philippe Mateta had an early sighter after racing on to a long pass