Unreliable Patrick Bamford is finished at Leeds United after anonymous cameo
As Leeds United searched for a winner against Rotherham United in their return to Championship action following the international break, Daniel Farke made sure to use his bench.
The German’s first changes came in the 70th minute as he introduced Ian Poveda, Wilfried Gnonto and Patrick Bamford into the contest but it wasn’t enough for the Whites to claim all three points at the New York Stadium.
Bamford in particular had an incredibly difficult evening against the Millers as he struggled to get involved in the match and was even adjudged to have drifted offside and attempted to play the ball for what could have been Leeds’ winner.
The 30-year-old may have played 20 minutes on Friday but he only touched the ball six times in his brief cameo and failed to do anything with his limited possession. Bamford only attempted two passes, with only one of them finding a teammate [Fotmob].
His only shot was an effort from outside the penalty area which did very little to threaten the scoreline as it drifted wide of the post. The only other contribution Bamford registered was the aforementioned offside and he drifted beyond the defence for a second time earlier in the match.
The last time Bamford played 20 minutes from the bench was in Leeds’ 1-0 defeat to Stoke City and in that clash he was similarly ineffective as he not only missed a crucial penalty but also only touched the ball on seven occasions completing only four passes.
In the same match, Georginio Rutter registered 52 touches and 26 attempted passes in the 90 minutes he played and it is clear that the Frenchman is seeing much more of the ball when he leads the line than Bamford is managing from the bench.
When you have a striker on the bench, the intention is to often use them to salvage a point or a win in a game where your side has not been at their best. Farke cannot continue to use Bamford in this way as he isn’t touching the ball enough in his cameos to impact games.
Not even the best strikers in the world can score without touching the ball and Bamford is no different. So far this season he has only seen one big chance in 120 minutes of action, the penalty that he skied in the Whites’ defeat to Stoke City.
If Leeds United have genuine ambitions of returning to the Premier League this season, they need a striker from the bench who will contribute in terms of goals and assists. Leicester City were able to call upon Jamie Vardy to score twice from the bench in their win over Watford on Saturday (25 November).
Farke and the 49ers should seriously consider trying to move Bamford on in January and instead sign a striker who can genuinely impact games from the bench. Potentially, even Joe Gelhardt or Mateo Joseph could be better options from the bench.
In other Leeds United news, one journalist has urged Farke to allow Charlie Cresswell to leave Elland Road this January