“Leeds, Leeds are falling apart again.” That was the chant from the Brentford fans and one that has echoed up and down the Championship in recent weeks. But Leeds didn’t fall apart and were notably resolute. They may not have won but they will take a lot of heart from this match.

A horrible mistake from Kiko Casilla, not his first this season, let in Saïd Benrahma to open the scoring for Brentford. But another goalkeeping error, this time from David Raya, allowed Liam Cooper to equalise just before half-time. In the second half Leeds were totally dominant, Brentford’s BMW – Benrahma, Bryan Mbeumo, Ollie Watkins – was on bricks. But despite two or three good chances the visitors were unable to convert their superiority into points.

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Marcelo Bielsa, the Leeds manager, took his time in delivering his post-match remarks and barely looked up while he did so. “The players left everything on the pitch,” he said. “We defended well. It was difficult to attack for us even though we attacked all the match. But we controlled their attackers well, we managed the ball well and this is not easy against a team like Brentford who have great players.”

Bielsa insisted his team played better at the weekend in their defeat by Nottingham Forest but Leeds were focused and determined from the off, only to fall behind. Casilla may have once worn the jersey of Real Madrid but he is looking like a real liability. Recent setbacks have been marked by Casilla errors and there was another, the Spaniard completely misreading a gentle backpass from Cooper, letting the ball run under a foot for Benrahma to score. Casilla pounded the turf in anger but, still, his teammates came over to help him up. “I don’t think Kiko needs my words, I always support him with decisions,” Bielsa said before acknowledging the collective support offered by the team. “I know the human quality of the players of Leeds, I think Casilla will receive support from his teammates and not lose confidence.”

Up until their goal, Brentford had struggled. Their manager Thomas Frank confessed that while his team knew all about the intensity of the Leeds press (the Dane unpicked its characteristics in some detail) there was a difference between understanding it and being able to counter it. But after Benrahma’s opener they had their best spell and the flicks, tricks and clever movement started to come back into their play. Just past the half-hour and Luke Ayling did brilliantly to block a Benrahma effort after a cute dummy from Watkins.

Leeds were down but they were not out and by half-time they were level. Their goal came from a corner, taken by Pablo Hernández. His delivery was accurate, coming down near the penalty spot into a crowd of players. Raya came to claim and got there but amid the bustle the goalkeeper was unable to keep his grip. The ball spilled and there was Cooper, the captain, to poke home into the roof of the net. He jogged back to the halfway line alone before celebrating with the raucous travelling fans.

Leeds emerged for the second half with the same attitude but also with more belief. They had the measure of Brentford’s midfield and were sharp on the counter. Patrick Bamford should have scored within seven minutes of the restart but badly misjudged a free header from an Ayling cross.

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In the 58th minute, Bamford’s good play in a tight space released Hélder Costa down the right but after an interchange with Mateusz Klich, the winger could hit only a tame shot. A third chance came just after the hour but again Bamford’s connection left a lot to be desired as Jack Harrison picked him out for a shot on the edge of the box.

The longer the game went on the more it became clear the only thing standing between Leeds and victory was themselves. And so it seemed a positive sign when Jean-Kévin Augustin came on for Bamford with 15 minutes to go.

But the clock ran down without the RB Leipzig loanee, making only his second appearance, getting a proper chance. Hernández did at least test Raya in the dying stages but this time he was up to the task and tipped the Spaniard’s volley over.

“I think it was a fair result,” said Frank, whose team remain two points and two places behind Leeds in fourth. He had suggested before the match that Leeds “feared” his team but rolled back on the words once events had superseded them. “I don’t do mind games,” he said. “I admire Bielsa, I think Leeds are one of the best teams [in the division].

“Maybe they didn’t fear us but they knew it would be a difficult match. There’s a reason why we are where we are in the table and they definitely respect us.”