‘An Enormous Match’ – The Leeds View
- Leeds United host Leicester City on Tuesday evening
- The Premier League fixture has an 8pm BST kick-off at Elland Road
- The Yorkshire Evening Post’s Joe Donnohue gives his take on the game
- The Whites are looking for a response to recent results, he says
Elland Road is the venue as 16th plays 17th in the Premier League and while recent results have not gone in Leeds’ favour, putting a dent in the Whites’ survival bid, they remain outside of the relegation zone.
That gap to the bottom three currently stands at one point, despite losing their last three, including a 2-1 reverse at Fulham on Saturday. Leicester City, meanwhile, were victorious at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“It’s enormous for both teams,” Donnohue told LCFC TV’s Matchday Live show. “They both know that if you are going to stay in the Premier League, these are the games you absolutely have to win. You have to beat the teams around you.
“Leicester are obviously coming into this with a win from the weekend that’ll really put them in good spirits, whereas Leeds are on the back of three defeats. The last one was the least damaging, but the hangover from the 5-1 against Palace and the 6-1 against Liverpool, both at Elland Road, is still very much present. Spirits aren’t exactly high at the moment.”
Javi Gracia’s arrival, following the departure of Jesse Marsch in February, sparked an upturn in form initially, but injuries to key players have not helped their cause in recent weeks. Bournemouth (63) are the only side to concede more than Leeds’ 62 goals so far this term.
“It all happened quite suddenly,” the journalist explained. “It hasn’t helped that Tyler Adams picked up an injury in training and has been out for around six or seven games now. He’s effectively the defensive lynchpin at the base of the midfield. He does all the tackling, running and pressing.
“It’s very difficult to replicate that with the options Leeds have within their squad. They’ve got Marc Roca but he’s more of a technician and a disruptor. They’ve also got Weston McKennie, but he’s a box-to-box player, he’s a ball carrier, rather than a disruptive influence.
“It’s been difficult to mitigate for Adams’ absence. But on top of that, in general, performances just haven’t been good enough. The mentality maybe just isn’t there. When they’ve conceded, they’ve then conceded again in quick succession.
“That’s happened in a couple of games, so the only remedy to that is going to be a win. But it doesn’t look like that win is round the corner, even though it needs to be, especially this week.”
Further up the pitch, a key decision will be whether Patrick Bamford is reintroduced into the starting XI, in place of Rodrigo, who started at Craven Cottage three days earlier.
Donnohue continued: “It will be interesting to see who Javi Gracia goes with, because Rodrigo has recently come back from an injury. He played the best part of 90 minutes against Fulham and it’s such a quick turnaround from the weekend.
“He’s the top scorer and he’s been the most consistent attacking performer this season. And in a game of such importance, you probably would lean towards the player who has been available and has delivered more often.
“Bamford came on for a short period of time, which we’ve seen as a precursor to when he does start games. I think the assumption is that Bamford can’t play 90 minutes on a Saturday and then again on a Tuesday.
“He had a bit of a calf issue recently, so they are definitely being careful and monitoring that. He’s a good shout to start. But there have been a few players who might not be able to feature who did at the weekend, because of knocks.”
The onus, Donnohue believes, is very much on the Leeds players to produce this week, especially with the home crowd behind them.
“It always is at Elland Road,” he explained. “It’s always a full house in the Premier League, always loud, always rowdy, always getting on the backs of referees when decisions aren’t going Leeds’ way and opposition players.
“You want a bit of atmosphere in one of the most historic grounds around the country. The fans know their importance and their support has been unconditional. Every game they turn up and sing their hearts out and get behind the team.
“I think what they are feeling right now is that they want to see it replicated on the pitch. The want the team to do something for them, because you can talk about how important the fans are going to be, but the players need to do it.
“It’s very much on the squad to get a positive result. Obviously, they will be helped and pushed on by Elland Road, but at a bare minimum, it has to be a more resolute performance and a more encouraging display than the last two games at home, where they’ve shipped 11 goals.”