Standout strikes from Liam Cooper and Souleymane Doukara have helped to give beleaguered Leeds United something to smile about as they lead travelling Blackpool 3-0 in the Championship this afternoon.

United's Doukara shone brightly in the opening minutes of the game and he also carved out a promising chance when he fed in Mirco Antenucci, who shot tamely straight at Joe Lewis.

The hosts continued to dominate in the early stages and they soon went ahead thanks to some wonderful precision from Cooper, who rifled his shot from distance into the top right corner.

United's stature in the game continued to show and they would have been two up inside 15 minutes had it not been for Antenucci's inefficiency, with the striker dragging his effort wide of the post from the centre of goal.

In a half of few clear-cut chances, it was Leeds who evidently had their shooting boots on, this time as Doukara extended his side's lead in the 32nd minute with a fine shot low into the bottom left corner.

Leeds secured another goal just before the break, as Antenucci finally found the target with another shot from distance, which settled into the bottom right-hand corner to leave the hosts 3-0 ahead at half time.