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30 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 2 DECEMBER 2018 SPORTS FOOTBALL DEAN Henderson's late howl- er gifted Leeds United a pre- cious 1-0 win over Sheffield United that lifts them to the top of the Sky Bet Champion- ship. The Blades goalkeeper's dreadful defensive error nine minutes from time handed Jack Clarke the ball in the box and he crossed for Pablo Her- nandez, who finished to settle a tense Yorkshire derby. Sheffield United pushed for an equaliser and were cruelly denied in stoppage-time as Conor Washington's overhead kick cannoned off the cross- bar. A third victory and clean sheet on the spin moves Leeds two points clear of Norwich at the top of the table, the Blades remain in fifth, five points off the pace. David McGoldrick drew Bai- ley Peacock-Farrell into action with an early rasping drive, but Sheffield United's attempts to take control of the game were repelled by a Leeds side that grew in confidence with every passing minute. Leeds lost Liam Cooper to injury midway through the half but there was nearly a sil- ver lining to the setback with- in five minutes as a free-kick fell at the feet of his replace- ment, Aapo Halme, in the box and the young midfielder' toe- poke was tipped behind by Henderson. The referee's whistle and poor finishing from McGol- drick spared Peacock-Farrell's blushes on 36 minutes, with the Leeds goalkeeper's flap at nothing going unpunished. The Leeds stopper was a by- stander a minute before half- time as Billy Sharp headed a glorious chance into the ground and over the bar after good work from McGoldrick. Leeds, bolstered by the ad- dition of young Clarke, posed the greater attacking threat after the break, with Barry Douglas flashing a shot over before Clarke drew Hender- son into action. Mateusz Klich bobbed and weaved his way into the Shef- field United area, only for Hen- derson to palm his shot away. At the other end, Leeds al- most shot themselves in the foot as Peacock-Farrell raced off his line and a defensive mix-up handed the ball to McGoldrick, but the Blades striker's shot hit the retreating goalkeeper's feet. Enda Stevens whistled a strike over on 70 minutes and Kemar Roofe powered a head- er inches wide of the Sheffield United goal before the game's crucial moment. John Egan's over-hit back- pass put Henderson under pressure and his attempted clearance was pounced on by Clarke, who squared for Her- nandez to put the game be- yond Sheffield United, despite Washington's attempted acro- batic finale. Sheffield United take on Reading at 5.30pm next Satur- day. Leeds host QPR at Elland Road at 3pm on the same day. Pablo Hernandez punishes Dean Henderson howler Pablo Hernandez's goal settled a tense Yorkshire derby CLAUDIO Ranieri has called on Tom Cairney to rediscover the form which saw him play an in- tegral role in Fulham's push for Premier League promotion. The 27-year-old scored the winning goal for Fulham in the Championship play-off final at Wembley as they returned to England's top-flight after a four- year absence. Cairney picked up an ankle in- jury on his third Premier League appearance and is yet to score a goal this season but has been moved into a more advanced role by new Cottagers boss Ranieri. "He is a good player with a high quality, but I want more from him," Ranieri said. "I want him to play as well in the Premier League as he did in the Championship. He scored a lot of goals there, and I want the same again. "He makes assists but also he can score goals, these are impor- tant because he has very good timings to arrive, he has a good left foot and I say to him, 'try, try', but, it's a little hard." Fulham face Chelsea in a west London derby on Super Sunday, live on Sky Sports Premier League and Ra- nieri says Cairney needs to be bolder in front of goal. "He has to shoot more; he has the quality to shoot, he must improve," Ranieri added. "Try! It's no problem, try! I ask him during training, 'shoot at goal, shoot at goal', but he passes and he passes. "Maybe when he comes to me on the bench he will realise and say, 'maybe it's much better if I shoot at goal'." Ranieri began his tenure as Fulham boss with a 3-2 victory against South- ampton and, despite facing a daunt- ing test against former side Chelsea, he is hopeful Aleksandar Mitrovic can maintain his goalscoring touch. "I believe in Aleksandar, but I think he needs more and more, and time for him to understand my philosophy," said Ranieri, who saw Mitrovic score twice last week. "Until he understands, it's important he keeps scoring goals. He has to be very, very strong; I want him to im- prove his pressing, and that's it. "And we have to try to make very good balls for him. Against South- ampton we made three crosses and we scored three times." Claudio Ranieri calls on Fulham's Tom Cairney to rediscover best form Tom Cairney is yet to score this season for Fulham