Leeds United head into Thursday night’s Premier League assembly with Leicester Metropolis in a disappointing run of kind, as, after successful three of their opening 4 fixtures in all competitions in 2022/23, Jesse Marsch’s aspect are actually and not using a win of their final six video games.
Though, regardless of the 1-0 loss to Arsenal final weekend, the Whites’ efficiency towards the table-toppers can have given the 48-year-old supervisor an excessive amount of confidence heading into tonight’s assembly with the bottom-of-the-table Foxes.
Certainly, following Patrick Bamford’s introduction at half-time towards the Gunners, Leeds have been extremely unfortunate to depart the sport with nothing, because the striker noticed an equaliser dominated out for a push on Gabriel Magalhaes, missed a penalty and initially appeared to have one other alternative to attract his crew degree from the spot earlier than VAR overturned the choice to award a penalty.
Nevertheless, whereas the 29-year-old in the end failed to tug his aspect degree, the England worldwide’s second-half show represented a stark distinction from the one turned in by Rodrigo within the first 45-minutes of the match – with the 31-year-old providing his aspect little or no throughout his time on the pitch.
Certainly, the Spaniard noticed all three of his makes an attempt at objective blocked, accomplished a complete of simply 14 passes and misplaced possession of the ball on six events, whereas the £58k-per-week ahead was additionally at fault for what proved to be the customer’s winner – together with his crossfield swap to Pascal Struijk being intercepted by Martin Odegaard, who then arrange Bukayo Saka to offer Arsenal the lead.
Following this show, Leeds Reside journalist Beren Cross awarded the attacker a 4 in his participant scores – the worst given to any of the Leeds aspect on the day – in addition to stating of the £6m-rated ahead’s efficiency:
“What began out as a promising show became one of many worst errors of the season with a weird, pitch-wide cross from proper to left, backwards into Struijk, which in the end put the Leeds objective in hurt’s method. Confidence was shattered from there on and a half-time hook appeared inevitable.”
As such, contemplating the Spain worldwide’s “shocker” – within the phrases of Cross – towards the Gunners, coupled with Bamford’s electrical introduction at half-time, it will very a lot seem as if Marsch merely should drop Rodrigo on the King Energy Stadium this night, because the striker may effectively price his aspect dearly in a fixture the Whites can’t afford to lose.
