Kewell ends Leeds' frustration

Leeds United 1 Hapoel Tel Aviv

When Terry Venables surveyed the squad he inherited from David O'Leary, what struck him most forcibly was that it had six strikers and one left-back. The Leeds manager, under pressure after half-a-dozen winless weeks, would have been grateful for his predecessor's lop-sided transfer policy ­ he had no fewer than four forwards on by the end and one, Harry Kewell, produced the goal which earned a victory that has restored some tarnished credibility.

For financial reasons and their own self-esteem, Leeds require a solid run in the Uefa Cup and even a one-goal lead may not be enough in what is likely to be the strange atmosphere of Florence's Artemio Franchi stadium, where Hapoel will stage their "home" leg. Their coach, Dror Kashtan, said he was "100 per cent confident" of overturning the result.

Here, Hapoel Tel Aviv are remembered for beating Chelsea on their way to the quarter-finals of last season's Uefa Cup, but they would regard victories over Parma and Milan as more memorable. For the first half, at least, Hapoel played like a team who regard itself as one with a serious European pedigree; their passing was slick, fast and inventive.

By contrast, Leeds began like a team who had not won in six matches and expected the sequence to be extended. Until Venables instilled some desire to clamp down on the space the Israelis enjoyed before the interval, it was a game Leeds never looked like mastering.

However, they did throughout create the better chances and, when Ian Harte's free-kick struck the intersection of crossbar and post, Venables, having seen his side hit the frame of the goal for the third time, was in despair. "I thought it was going to be one of those nights," he said. But for Kewell, who had earlier squandered a close-range header, meeting Alan Smith's overhead flick with a decisive shot eight minutes from the end, it nearly was.

Mark Viduka, enjoying one of the better evenings of what has been an indifferent season, had a hand in both Leeds' other near-misses. First, dancing inside two defenders, he produced a cross which Nick Barmby met with an overhead kick that hammered against the foot of the post. Then, five minutes before the break, the Australian's free-kick clipped the top of the crossbar.

Hapoel did not lack for confidence but, as the match wore on, the shoot-when-you-see-the-whites-of-their-shirts policy became ragged, although in each half Paul Robinson made an outstanding full-length save from Salim Toema. "Leeds have to say thank you to Mr Robinson," Kashtan declared. "He stopped three certain goals."

Leeds United (4-3-3): Robinson; Kelly, Woodgate, Radebe, Harte; Dacourt (McPhail, 65), Barmby (Bridges, 70), Bakke; Kewell, Smith, Viduka (Mills, 90). Substitutes not used: Duberry, McMaster, Singh, Martyn (gk).

Hapoel Tel Aviv (3-5-2): Elimelech; Halis, Domb, Gershon; Afek, Halmai (Abutbul, 65), Abukasis, Toema, Antebi; Balili (Udi, 84), Welton (Clescenco, 59). Substitutes not used: Halfon, Zion Luz, Saban, Salem (gk).

Referee: J van Hulten (Netherlands).