The Premier League is on hold until the end of December whilst the World Cup is played in Qatar, and some of the Leeds United players must use the upcoming friendlies to their advantage.
The Whites have three tough tests before the season resumes against Manchester City on December 28th when they will travel to Elche on Thursday before hosting Europa League outfits Real Sociedad and AS Monaco at Elland Road. All but three players, Tyler Adams, Brenden Aaronson and Rasmus Kristensen have been at Elland Road preparing for the games and the fringe players need to use these matches to get themselves back in the coach’s plans. Reports this week are that Adam Forshaw is fighting for a contract extension and must prove his fitness, and Mateusz Klich is one of the players increasingly likely to be leaving in January.
Some of the players, like Diego Llorente, Sam Greenwood, Patrick Bamford, and Luke Ayling who have not featured as much as they would have liked this season, whether that be through injury or team selection, must now grab their chance with both hands and show Jesse Marsch that they deserve to be at the club, and in his plans for the future. Another player who was struggling for form before the break was Jack Harrison, and with Newcastle United likely to come sniffing around the winger again next month, there will be serious questions asked about the 26-year-olds future in West Yorkshire.
With the January transfer window fast approaching, deals for new players and indeed bids for some of the Leeds United players will have to be given serious consideration as Marsch looks to bolster his squad with some new faces. Considering the reports that Dan James had to leave the club on loan to Fulham so they could bring in Willy Gnonto, there is every possibility that it may be a one-in, one-out situation at the club for future transfers. The Augustin saga will have also affected Jesse Marsch’s budget, with the fans seeing a left-back and a striker as the bare minimum the club must capture this window. However, that may mean some of the lesser-used players will have to make way.
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