O'Leary still wants more

Kewell, 23, recalled the magnificent European displays of two seasons ago which had Inter Milan and Roma heading a continental chase for his services and prompted chairman Peter Ridsdale to put a £40million price tag on him.

He was just outside his own penalty area when he received the ball from Olivier Dacourt, but set off on a run that had the crowd roaring by the time he had crossed the halfway line.

Mihai Tararache failed to halt Kewell, who had been handed a roving role by O'Leary, and by the time last defender Roland Schwegler made his desperate lunge it was too late.

Kewell's finish, right-footed for a change, carried power and a touch of delicacy as Liechtenstein goalkeeper Peter Jehle dived bravely but in vain at his feet. The reaction from the crowd was electric. There was also a hint of relief from the faithful.

O'Leary's side went into the match in a comfortable position for a change after losing away legs in both previous rounds against Maritimo and Troyes, but were looking for a convincing victory to add to their 2-1 first-leg win in Zurich a fortnight earlier.

After looking worthy Premiership leaders until October, their recent record made more sober reading with just two wins in nine matches before last night and a Worthington Cup exit at home to great rivals Chelsea a week earlier.

But Kewell, voted Leeds' player of the year in 2000, finally looked the part again on the grand stage that so often lifts him to the sublime heights that have made him one of Europe's most exciting performers.

Wearing gloves against the chill Yorkshire night, he put well behind him the disappointment he and team-mate Mark Viduka shared in Australia's failed attempt at World Cup qualification in Uruguay, a trip that inevitably left Leeds in a weakened state for the November programme they found such hard going.

Had he scored a second when he drifted past Boris Smiljanic and unleashed a shot that cannoned off the crossbar after 28 minutes, Kewell would certainly have settled the tie for a re-shuffled Leeds side that often struggled to assert its authority.

But as the first half drew to a close, the Swiss found themselves back on terms - at least on the night - following rare defensive errors from two of Leeds' most dependable players.

Skipper Rio Ferdinand passed across the defence with too much power for Danny Mills to collect and Stephane Chapuisat was able to get in a crucial block tackle as Mills stretched to clear.

Nigel Martyn, perhaps caught off guard, might still have collected the ball as it reached him but his fumble, with the Leeds rearguard in disarray, offered Nunez the chance to claim his 20th goal in 26 matches this season.

Elland Road fell quiet, but briefly. Mills, frustrated at the way Leeds had conceded the equaliser, launched a swift counter-attack. Alan Smith dummied for Robbie Keane to dash clear and hit the ball low beyond Jehle and into his bottom left-hand corner.

Yet Leeds were never able to find the third goal that would have sealed their passage, and Grasshopper refused to give up their ghost of a chance.

Substitute Luca Ippotiti brought the save of the night from Martyn, who leapt spectacularly to keep the ball out of his top left-hand corner eight minutes from the end but he was eventually beaten again deep into time added on when Nunez squeezed one past him from 25 yards off a surface made greasy by the constant Yorkshire drizzle.

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