It will be a rare midweek fixture for Leeds United on Tuesday night as they take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Subject to broadcasting and scheduling issues, it is currently Leeds’ penultimate midweek fixture, with only Premier League fixtures to see out the remainder of the season.
There is little time to celebrate the important 3-1 victory against Nottingham Forest on Friday night, which saw United maintain their 6 point distance away from the relegation zone.
Their opponents on Tuesday, Chelsea, mirrored the same score-line against struggling Wolves on Saturday thanks to a Cole Palmer hat-trick. There is all to play for both teams, where 3 points will be a massive for either side in a congest league table.
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Buonanotte Omission Against Forest Raised Questions
One of the most controversial decisions ahead of the Forest game was for manager Daniel Farke to leave new loan signing Facundo Buonanotte out of the matchday squad. It was believed to have been a ‘technical decision’ rather than any injury-related issue.
Buonanotte’s miserable loan to Chelsea for the first half of the season was cut short by Brighton & Hove Albion, in the hope of getting more gametime at Elland Road. The Whites were interested in the player last summer, to help spark some creativity in the side.
Since then, a host of existing players such as Brendan Aaronson and summer signing Noah Okafor have rejuvenated United’s attack. However, depth in those positions have been welcomed by fans to help sustain the club’s Premier League status with 13 games to go.
As far as the televised press conference went, there was no clarification on whether Buonanotte will get a look-in over coming games, but the mid-week game should offer some rotation opportunities despite the strength of the opposition.
Photo by Jon Hobley/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Farke On Chelsea and The Relegation Fight
Some of the topics on offer in Farke’s press conference were looking ahead to Tuesday’s match, but also the relegation fight in general.
On Chelsea, Farke said: “We don’t have to speak about the individual quality of the players they have. They are a very promising group of players with bags of potential. We travel with respect, but [are] aware we have the tools to bring our strengths on to the pitch.”
He also offered praise for the new manager Liam Rosenior, who had experience in managing Hull City in the Championship a few seasons ago:
“He [Rosenior] is still a relatively young and promising coach. He is definitely a very, very talented manager and promising one.”
The 40 point benchmark is notoriously set for relegation threatened clubs to achieve, in order to guarantee safety. The unpredictable nature of this campaign voids this – for better or worse. West Ham’s uplift in form moves them closer towards 17th place, sitting them 17 points away from 40 points. Even that may not be enough this season, and Farke is well aware:
“If it’s one out of 20 seasons where you need more [than 40] points, we have to win more points. I am not too concentrated on doing too much maths, I am more concentrated on [doing] more good performances.”
Key Injuries – Calvert-Lewin, Dan James, Bijol And More
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There was an update on winger Dan James, who has been injured for over two months. The Leeds manager stated that the Welshman was “two weeks back in training”, but based on his statements, a return to the pitch could be too soon yet.
There were injury updates elsewhere for key players. Farke said: “Dominic was struggling a little bit with illness.
“Pascal Struijk will definitely miss this game. He has some problems with his hip flexor. Anton Stach will be back for the Villa game – they will both miss this game.”
However, Farke confirmed that Jaka Bijol and Lukas Nmecha will be available for the trip to West London.
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