Leeds United beat Middlesbrough in a seven-goal thriller

A blistering opening saw five goals scored in the first half, with Boro taking the lead after just seven minutes through Isaiah Jones, but the visitors soon got back into the game with goals from Summerville and Patrick Bamford.

A thrilling encounter saw Emmanuel Latte Latte level on 30 minutes, only for Wilfried Gnonto to restore Leeds’ advantage from a ruthless attack.

Summerville extended its lead in the second half before Latte Latte headed a late comeback.

However, Leeds won, which saw them leapfrog Ipswich into second place despite having played more games than the Suffolk club.

Middlesbrough took the lead in the seventh minute when Luke Thomas won the ball down the left flank and played in Finn Azaz, who played a quick pass to the onrushing Latte Latte.

Leeds keeper Illan Meslier came out to block the ball, which went under him and into the path of Jones, who stabbed the ball past defender Junior Firpo and into the empty net.

The visitors calmed down and equalized seven minutes later when Anferni Dijksteel clipped Georginio Rutter’s ankle in the area and missed a penalty.

Summerville powered the next ball into the bottom left corner and Leeds quickly built on that momentum as they took the lead in the 18th minute.

Former Boro striker Bamford returned to the Riverside to put Leeds ahead, with Firpo’s keeper Seni Dieng battling it out.

Patrick Bamford (9) celebrates giving Leeds the lead in the first half at Middlesbrough. (Photo: PA.)

After threatening from some corners, Boro grabbed an equalizer on the half-hour when Leeds were denied a throw-in in their own half.

Azaz found an unmarked Latte Lat on the edge of the box, and Meslier could only palm the striker’s powerful shot home.

Leeds took the lead after nine minutes with Archie Gray working well in midfield, Summerville slotting the ball to Gnonto who slotted it past Dieng.

The visitors followed in similar style a minute later, but Bamford’s effort was saved by Dieng.

At the other end, Sammy Silvera fired a shot over the bar just before the break.

At the start of the second half, the home side moved patiently around the pitch and Lewis O’Brien and Dijksteel tested Meslier with dangerous crosses.

However, Leeds struck next from another devastating break in the 61st minute when Firpo played his way through to Summerville in acres of space on the left.

The Dutch forward still had a lot of work to do from here, but he scored his second goal of the evening with a superb curling effort.

There was another twist in the game when Latte Lat set up a manic finale in the 87th minute after curling a header over Meslier from a cross.

The visitors were forced to defend furiously and Meslier dived low to deny former Leeds skipper Jonny Howson’s half-time effort.

It would have been a scriptwriter’s dream, but it wasn’t to be for Leeds, and the win set the stage well for their final league game at lowly QPR on Friday night.