Four-midable: Leeds ease past Newcastle to climb to third in Premier League

Newcastle slumped to a first defeat against Leeds in seven matches

Noah Okafor scored Leeds' fourth goal against Newcastle. Pic: Annabel Lee-Ellis/PA Wire.

Premier League: Leeds United 4 Newcastle 1

Leeds sent sorry Newcastle spinning to a 4-1 defeat at Elland Road to extend their unbeaten Premier League start and climb to third in the table.

Daniel Farke’s side struck twice in two first-half minutes through Lewis Miley’s own goal and Jayden Bogle before Dominic Calvert-Lewin added a third before the interval.

It remained one-way traffic in the second half and Leeds could have won by a bigger margin after Noah Okafor struck their fourth, with substitute Bazoumana Toure scoring a late consolation for the shell-shocked visitors.

Leeds’ appeals for an early penalty when the ball appeared to hit the arm of Newcastle debutant Matias Fernandes-Pardo on the edge of his penalty area were unsuccessful as the visitors came under early pressure.

Newcastle goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek was forced into a sprawling low save to keep out Bogle’s hooked effort before Magpies boss Matthias Jaissle was forced into a change.

Summer signing Nico Gonzalez had needed treatment after being struck in the face by the ball in the opening exchanges and he was replaced by Sean Steur in the 20th minute.

Leeds continued to threaten and soon after Hornicek had punched clear Bogle’s dipping volley, they struck twice in as many minutes to take control.

Their opener came in fortuitous circumstances. Okafor cut in from the left and teed up Ao Tanaka, whose shot from the edge of the box took a double deflection – off Steur and then Lewis Miley – before spinning into the top corner.

There was nothing lucky about the home side’s second though after Steur’s misplaced pass out from the back had been pounced on by Bogle.

James Justin’s right-wing cross was met by Calvert-Lewin’s towering goal-bound header, which struck Bogle on the head before flying into the bottom corner.

Hornicek denied Leeds a third when he kept out close-range shots from Gabriel Gudmundsson and Calvert-Lewin in quick succession, but Newcastle fell 3-0 behind in first-half stoppage time.

Gudmundsson picked out Calvert-Lewin in the box and the striker side-stepped Sven Botman’s challenge to fire home a low finish inside the far post.

Leeds were unrelenting at the start of the second period and Anton Stach squandered a golden chance after intercepting Botman’s pass.

But after a non-plussed Jaissle sent on Joe Willock, Tino Livramento and Toure for Fernandes-Pardo, Amar Dedic and Jacob Murphy, Leeds added a fourth goal in the 59th minute.

Ethan Ampadu, celebrating his 26th birthday, swung a long throw into the box and Botman’s headed clearance was thumped inside the far post by Okafor on the half-volley.

Newcastle had not troubled home goalkeeper James Trafford throughout and a rare shot on target from Toure in the 89th minute was scant consolation for them as they slumped to a first defeat against Leeds in seven matches.