Bielsa told to throw returning Leeds United players straight back into squad by pundit
We’re delighted to welcome former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson as our exclusive columnist as each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Leeds United...
Paul Robinson feels Marcelo Bielsa has no choice but to throw his Leeds United players back into the action as soon as possible as they return from injury.
Speaking today (Friday) ahead of Leeds’ Premier League meeting with Burnley at Elland Road on Sunday, Bielsa confirmed that the club’s injury crisis is allaying.
Junior Firpo, Daniel James, Diego Llorente and Jack Harrison are all available again and while Patrick Bamford isn’t ready to face Burnley, he has recovered from his latest injury and a lack of match fitness is the only thing keeping him sidelined this weekend [Leeds’ official Twitter account].
With all of those players available again, Robinson is adamant that Bielsa needs to play them as much as he can in the coming weeks, rather than staggering their returns.
Speaking to MOT Leeds News, the ex-goalkeeper said: “I don’t think he’s in a position where he can stagger them coming back.
“I think if they’re fit enough to get an hour under their belt, then they have to play with the number of players who’ve been missing and how depleted the squad has been of key players.
“Different players will react differently to having time off, some you find will hit the ground running and be ready to play for 60-80 minutes but some will take longer.
“I’m sure they’ll all be monitored on an individual basis but if any of those players are fit enough to play an hour, they have to start.”
Leeds haven’t played since 18 December when they were beaten 4-1 by Arsenal at Elland Road.
Since then, two matches have been postponed due to COVID and that has allowed Bielsa some extra time to oversee a return to fitness for his injury-ravaged squad.
In other Leeds United news, Phil Hay has dropped a Marcelo Bielsa exit verdict amid recent speculation.