Bowyer does the business as Leeds bounce back

You suspect they would have been happy with a point, indeed after the Barcelona demolition it seems reasonable to assume they would have been happy just to make the point that they actually deserved to be in this company. But Leeds United made more than just points last night. Yes, they got all three, but in beating a club the size of AC Milan, Leeds reminded Europe that they could be a coming force after all. This represents only a beginning for this Leeds side.

Last night all the drama came at the end. With a dry game on a wet surface seemingly petering out to a goalless conclusion, Lee Bowyer accepted an 89th-minute pass from Eirik Bakke 25 yards from Milan's goalkeeper Dida. Little was on.

Maybe that and the fact that Dida had been relatively undisturbed until then affected Dida; but when Bowyer drilled in his optimistic shot the Brazilian dropped the slippery ball and watched it bounce over the line. It was a most casual moment from a man signed from Corinthians and one he apologised for after.

"We got a flukey goal but you need a bit of luck," said David O'Leary.

The result meant that Milan, on their 10th visit to England, had failed again to record a first win. That's some run, as is the failure to score a goal in England since 1972. Andrei Shevchenko came close to doing that three times in the second half but was thwarted by a combination of Nigel Martyn and Danny Mills.

At the end Milan looked stunned. "It's a pity because we were controlling the game the way we wanted to," said the Milan coach Alberto Zaccheroni, "but the rule is that if you don't take your chances, you will be punished."

A draw would have left Milan top of the group given the remarkable scoreline from Istanbul where Besiktas defeated Barcelona 3-0. Now though, Group H has all four clubs on three points. Besiktas come here next Tuesday. What a difference a week makes.

After last Wednesday it was more than Leeds or O'Leary dared to expect. But the return from injury of Bakke proved pivotal, not just on the goal, while Dominic Matteo, making his debut after his transfer from Liverpool, further strengthened the midfield so weakened in Spain.

Despite the emptying heavens Leeds began with a surprising sureness of foot and the contrast with last week in Barcelona was obvious. Then Leeds were 1-0 down after nine minutes and two behind by the 20th, but Elland Road is a different environment from the Nou Camp and after a few hostile challenges from the home side - one tackle from behind by Michael Duberry left Shevchenko limping - it appeared the men from Milan might not be relishing a wet September night in west Yorkshire.

Shevchenko complained repeatedly to the referee but then the Ukrainian's humour cannot have been boosted by the restricted opportunities coming his way. Not that Dida was particularly busy either. He was not called into action until the 17th minute to fist away a Matteo cross and then block the follow up drive from Bakke. He did not do much after that, perhaps to his regret ultimately.

Two minutes after that flurry Bakke placed a firm header over from eight yards from a useful Lee Bowyer out-swinger and the parity at half-time reflected not just the game, but also the rediscovery of some self-belief by O'Leary's young players. They were retaining their shape and composure.

The returning confidence might have been affected had the leaden Oliver Bierhoff not made a relatively straightforward near-post chance shortly after the interval look like an exercise in trigonometry, however. Beirhoff's finish was more than a fraction out, though the same was true of Duberry's header from a Bowyer corner. Duberry met the ball full-on and anywhere on target and it would surely have beaten Dida.

That could have been taken as a sign that Leeds were going for the big push but while they still enjoyed far more possession that the paltry 30 per cent they had in Barcelona, two mistakes by Gary Kelly handed the momentum to the Italians. On both occasions Kelly lost the ball on the half-way line and both times Shevchenko sped away to produce rasping shots that Martyn did well to tip over and parry.

In between Shevchenko was gifted another breakaway and was bearing down on Martyn when Mills nipped in to take the ball off Shevchenko's toe. It was possibly Mills's most telling contribution since his £4 million arrival from Charlton last summer.

There were still 25 minutes to play but that as much as Bowyer's glorious intervention guaranteed Leeds their first historic points in this competition. In the bonanza known as the Champions League that is worth £250,000. Though this night was not about money. At least not just about money.

Leeds: Martyn, Kelly, Harte, Duberry, Mills, Bowyer, Bakke, Dacourt, Matteo, Bridges, Smith. Subs Not Used: Robinson, Huckerby, Jones, Hay, Burns, Evans, Hackworth. Booked: Bakke, Mills. Goals: Bowyer 89.

AC Milan: Dida, Chamot, Costacurta, Maldini, Helveg, Albertini, Giunti (Saudati 90), Coco, Guglielminpietro (De Ascentis 59), Bierhoff, Shevchenko. Subs Not Used: Rossi, Leonardo, Roque Junior, Sala, Serginho. Booked: Coco, Maldini.

Referee: G Benko (Austria).