Pablo Hernández sinks Swansea to put Leeds on verge of Premier League

Marcelo Bielsa felt Leeds had taken a “step forward” to winning promotion after Pablo Hernández’s late winner secured a 1-0 victory at Swansea.

On a day when Leeds paid tribute to club great Jack Charlton, who died at the age of 85 on Friday, Bielsa’s side moved to within four points of ending their 16-year wait to play in the top flight of English football.

The Championship leaders are now three points ahead of second-placed West Brom, and six clear of in-form Brentford, with games against Barnsley, Derby and Charlton to come.

“I cannot enjoy this,” Bielsa said. “What you feel just is that you are taking a step forward. The only thing I can enjoy is the last objective, if we get it.

“The match was very close, very narrow, few chances. When the match progressed our possibilities were growing and in the last 30 minutes I think we deserved to score and to make the difference.”

In a game of few chances before the winner, Leeds had the best opportunity after 64 minutes.

Patrick Bamford failed to head home from six yards, allowing the Swansea goalkeeper, Freddie Woodman, to palm away his effort. But Hernández, who played for Swansea between 2012 and 2014, proved the hero by rolling home Luke Ayling’s cross off a post.

“What we feel is taking the steps we have to take,” Bielsa said. “But of course when you score at the end of the match it’s a higher feeling. The bigger emotion we didn’t get that yet.”

Charlton, a World Cup winner with England in 1966, was part of the great Don Revie Leeds sides of the 1960s and early 1970s. Leeds was the only club Charlton played for and he made 773 appearances for them between 1953 and 1973.

Tributes were paid to Charlton before kick-off with both sets of players and staff applauding the former defender’s contribution to football after a minute’s silence had been held.

“The legends of the club deserve a big attention from us,” Bielsa said. “But I don’t want to take the risk to talk about the victory and the loss of a person. I don’t want to link those two things.”

Swansea’s manager, Steve Cooper, insisted defeat was harsh on his side. “I thought we were comfortable in the game and I’m really disappointed to lose like that,” Cooper said. “I think both teams were cautious in terms of attacking and defending and I would have just liked to have had a bit more of the ball in the second half. It was just so disappointing to see that ball trickle in the way it did after the boys had put so much into the game.”

Swansea remain just outside the play-off places, a point behind Welsh rivals Cardiff in seventh place. “It’s probably going to go to the last game as most things are in the league,” Cooper said. “The dressing room is down of course and it’s still raw, but the fire in the belly is still there to achieve and we’ll be going to the end.”