Silbea United 3 - 1 Leigh United

Key Events:

• 32' Yellow card to Silbea United Jose Nascimento
• 35' Yellow card to Leigh United Phillip Thomas
• 44' Yellow card to Leigh United Marco Baldini
• 52' Silbea United Andro Beridze scores, assisted by Ian Thomson
• 59' Silbea United Jose Gomez scores, assisted by Ian Thomson
• 63' Leigh United Marco Baldini scores, assisted by Cristian Martinez
• 67' Silbea United Theo van Rossum scores, assisted by Jose Gomez
• 79' Yellow card to Leigh United Sada Muramatsu

Expected Goals (xG) Analysis: Silbea United scored three from 2.24 xG, an overperformance of 0.76; Leigh United scored once from 1.97, finishing 0.97 below its chance estimate. The underlying figures describe a more even contest than the scoreline alone: the hosts had 10 shots to Leigh’s nine, and both sides put most of those attempts on target, with an 8-7 advantage for Silbea United. The home side’s 53% possession and better pass accuracy gave it a small measure of control, while Leigh’s six corners and 14 tackles show the visitors were not short of ways into the game. The decisive difference was the finish. Silbea United converted its stronger spell after half-time into three goals; Leigh managed to answer once, but could not turn a comparable chance-quality estimate into a closer score.

• No Leigh United players recorded a rating of 7.0 or higher.

For Leigh United, the consolation from Marco Baldini arrived four minutes after Jose Gomez had made it 2-0, and briefly gave the visitors a way back into the contest. But Theo van Rossum restored the two-goal margin before the hour had properly settled, and Silbea United kept that advantage through the remaining minutes. The three away yellow cards, against one for the hosts, added some edge to an otherwise fairly measured tally of fouls.

The result was therefore more emphatic than the chance estimates suggest, but not detached from the match: Silbea United created slightly more, put eight shots on target, and made its best spell count. Leigh’s work rate and opportunities were real; so was the gap in finishing. At 3-1, the hosts left with a comfortable win, while the xG ledger offered Leigh United the sort of consolation that is accurate, interesting and of limited use on the way home.