Jack Harrison struck late at the Madejski Stadium this evening to secure Leeds United a 1-0 win over Reading and move Marcelo Bielsa’s side to the top of the Championship table.  

Leeds were held for long periods by Mark Bowen’s side, but Harrison’s effort on 87 minutes proved to be a killer blow for the Royals.

With Leeds dominating the ball from the off, you felt Reading’s best chances would come on the break and, inside the opening five minutes, George Puscas was close to converting Yakou Meite’s square ball after a swift counter following a Whites corner.

That spell of Royals pressure appeared to wake Leeds up a little bit, but Bielsa will have been frustrated by his side’s inability to break down Reading’s back five, which was excellently shielded by Andy Rinomhota.

Leeds forced corners, but Reading’s physicality defending them meant chances were few and far between, with the Whites failing to test Rafael in any form in the opening 45 minutes.

In fact, it was Ovie Ejaria – as he so often does – putting bums on the edge of seats, with the classy midfielder giving Kalvin Phillips plenty to think about; twisting and turning his way into the area on 28 minutes but failing to pick out a teammate.

Leeds were forced to pull one of their playmakers out of the action on 35 minutes, with Helder Costa replacing Tyler Roberts, who was straight down the tunnel with another injury problem.

Costa would force a couple of corners, but again, Leeds struggled to make their presence felt in Rafael’s area and Bowen’s side continued to look comfortable.

And, as half-time approached at the Madejski, it was a corner of Reading’s that produced the game’s best chance so far.

Meite, who showcased his power all half, met a John Swift corner, but directed his downward header straight at Kiko Casilla in the Leeds goal. The forward was furious with his inability to beat the Spaniard, with Bielsa’s defence warned.

Bielsa’s men started the second-half brighter, though, with Luke Ayling and Ben White both getting forward well. The former took a tumble in the area, but soft penalty appeals were waved away as Leeds looked for an edge.

Liam Cooper and Patrick Bamford would waste decent chances around the hour mark, with Reading starting to grow in confidence after a tough opening 15 minutes to the second-half.

Stuart Dallas would serve the Royals a warning on 64 minutes, though, sizing up the goal before rattling an effort back off Rafael’s crossbar from the edge of the area.

Reading responded to that chance well, with Michael Morrison wasting a golden opportunity to put the Royals ahead. A Swift free-kick fell to the centre-back in the area, but he fired his effort over without worrying Casilla.

Again, Dallas would look to break the deadlock for Leeds, but his volley was comfortable for Rafael. However, you sensed something would give either way as the game approached its final 20 minutes and opened up.

White would fire an effort over after a corner fell his way, before Dallas shot into the side-netting after a raking ball from substitute, Ezgjan Alioski.

Bowen sent on Lucas Boye looking for some fresh impetus in attack, with a Swift free-kick forcing Casilla into action in tough conditions.

However, that sparked a counterattack from Bielsa’s side, which brought the breakthrough on 87 minutes.

Costa’s cross from the right took a slight deflection, which looped it to Harrison, who arrived at the back-post to power home his fourth goal of the season and send the away end crazy.

From there, Leeds managed to see off any Reading threat, playing out the final moments with limited scare to move back to the top of the Championship table for 24 hours at least.

FULL-TIME: Reading FC 0-1 Leeds United.