| Leeds | 0-0 | Aston Villa |
Patrick Goss reports
Leeds and Aston Villa provided a 90 minute advertisement for a winter break, with the two sides playing out a drab 0-0 draw at Elland Road on a miserable Boxing Day.A warm reception for returning manager David O'Leary aside, two disallowed goals - one for each side - proved the extent of the excitement, in a game that seemed to be lacking the AA batteries to bring it to life.
Michael Duberry had briefly sparked the crowd when he banged home a set-piece at the far post in the second half, only to find an offside flag ruling out the goal.
Villa had also had an effort ruled out - earlier in the game - for an unnecessary handball by Juan Pablo Angel.
A drab first half had seen little quality from either side, allowing the Eland Road crowd to tinker with their Christmas Day presents and ponder who would provide some excitement.
Jermaine Pennant was providing sporadic moments of quality down the flanks, the Arsenal loan star's pace and control keeping the Villa defence wary of breakaways.
Villa did manage to put the ball in the net, but found their effort rightfully ruled out for a handball by Juan Pablo Angel.
Lee Hendrie's free kick looked bound for the far corner and had beaten Paul Robinson when Angel handled the ball, letting Leeds off the hook.
The let-off galvanised The Whites, with youngster Jamie Milner guilty of a criminal miss after a punt up the field had left him through with the ball dropping kindly for him to volley home.
However, the teenager lost composure at the crucial second and his mis-kick bobbled harmlessly back to Thomas Sorensen.
Captain Dominic Matteo was then close to establishing a lead when his tenacity earned him a header, but the Scot could not muster enough power as the ball dropped and his effort was tipped over by Sorensen.
Honours even then, and in truth neither side showed enough quality to have claimed a victory.
Perhaps the only compensation to those present was that it will make a return to turkey sandwiches and the last of the eggnog more palatable.
| Leeds | Aston Villa | |
| Possession % | 53% | 47% |
| Goals | 0 | 0 |
| Shots on target | 1 | 2 |
| Shots off target | 3 | 10 |
| Blocked shots | 2 | 1 |
| Corners | 7 | 5 |
| Fouls | 16 | 16 |
| Offsides | 3 | 5 |
| Yellow cards | 0 | 2 |
| Red cards | 0 | 0 |
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64 
64 
