Patrick Bamford axed, Mateo Joseph starts – Predicted Leeds United XI v Coventry City
Daniel Farke could be set to make changes to his Leeds United starting lineup for their Championship clash with Coventry on Saturday afternoon.
The Whites earned a big 3-1 win over Hull on Monday night to stay just a point behind league leaders Ipswich thanks to late goals from Crysencio Summerville and Daniel James, while Coventry suffered a 2-1 defeat to Cardiff.
But with several injuries to deal with and a busy schedule right now, the boss may look to freshen things up with his team in order to have the best chance of success to keep the pressure on those around them in the race for promotion.
Leeds United defence is king
Leeds conceded their first goals from open play in 2024 during the games over the Easter weekend, but two of the three came when the partnership of Ethan Ampadu and Joe Rodon was broken up.
Daniel Farke made it clear he wasn’t happy about that and restored it in the next game, so it seems highly likely they will start together in central defence once again, with Illan Meslier behind them in goal.
Junior Firpo has performed well at left-back in recent weeks and should keep his place, while with Connor Roberts out injured Sam Byram should fill in at right-back once again after his goal.
In midfield Ilia Gruev could make a return, but the boss won’t want to rush him back too soon and so the axis of Archie Gray and Glen Kamara is likely to see another outing.
Patrick Bamford should be dropped by Leeds
Crysencio Summerville has found his goalscoring touch once again and has two goals in his last two games, so he will most certainly continue in his preferred left-wing role.
Wilfried Gnonto remains sidelined for a few weeks which should see Daniel James continue on the right too, while Georginio Rutter has made that number ten role his own with 15 assists in the Championship this season.
But the number nine role is up for grabs and Patrick Bamford has now gone three games without a goal, and after a huge miss against Hull youngster Mateo Joseph deserves a chance to stake his own claim for a starting place.
In other Leeds news, a European club has “pressed the button” on a deal for their striker after the Whites interest was made public.
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