Cagliari 1 Leeds United 1: Kalvin Phillips sees red as Whites complete pre-season preparations

Marcelo Bielsa opted for a relatively strong line-up in Italy having once again split his squad on the final weekend before competitive action commenced. A Whites XI defeated Spanish side Girona earlier in the evening in a behind closed doors game in Manchester with Clarke Oduor, Jack Harrison and Gjanni Alioski bagging in a 3-2 win. The Argentine opted to begin with a 3-3-1-3 formation in Sardinia with Ben White partnering Liam Cooper and Gaetano Berardi in defence. Leeds got off to a nervy start as the hosts pressed high and conceded inside the opening 15 minutes with some sloppy play at the back. Forward Leonardo Pavoletti chested down in the area before Valter Birsa pounced on a loose ball to rifle a low shot home past Kiko Casilla. Leeds recovered from the slow start as Mateusz Klich forced Alessio Cragno into action before Patrick Bamford himself volleyed wide. United again invited pressure on themselves as new I Rossoblu signing Marcus Rog was given the freedom down the left to cut inside Gaetano Berardi. The former Napoli man was bundled to the floor but referee Valerio di Roma waved away the appeals. Bielsa's men ended the half the stronger of the two sides as they forced a flurry of corners but were unable to draw level as the sides headed into the half-time interval. Just minutes after the break United had their way back into the game as Klich was bundled to the floor inside the box by substitute Filip Bradaric following good work from Leif Davis. Pablo Hernandez was tasked with levelling from 12-yards and he squared things up with a lovely dink high into the net. The two sides then exchanged chances as substitute Alberto Cerri saw a free header inside the box fly over the bar before Mateusz Bogusz - who replaced Klich on the hour - found freedom inside the Cagliari half as he burst through unopposed to pick out fellow substitute Jack Clarke. The winger, though, fired his effort straight at the diving Cragno who produced strong hands to keep the scores level with a good save. There was to be now winner but a final twist in the tale came late on as Kalvin Phillips received his marching orders . The midfielder lunged fully committed into a tackle on the halfway line as a loose ball broke in front of Simone Pinna. Phillips was handed a straight red card by the Italian match official as the Whites capped off their pre-season preparations with a draw. Cagliari XI: Cragno; Mattiello, Ceppitelli (C), Klavan, Lykogiannīs; Rog, Oliva, Ioniță; Birsa; João Pedro, Pavoletti. Leeds United XI: Casilla, Davis, Cooper, White, Berardi, Phillips, Klich (Bogusz 65'), Forshaw, Costa (Clarke 61'), Hernandez, Bamford. Subs not used: Rae, Jenkins, Casey.