Daniel Farke handed 'huge blow' as Ilia Gruev surgery update emerges at Leeds United

Paul Robinson was gutted after learning the news of Ilia Gruev undergoing surgery on a new injury at Leeds United.

Graham Smyth reported via X [3 October] that the Bulgarian is set to be sidelined for months after being forced off against Norwich City, with surgery being required to fix the issue.

Following the news, Gruev sent a message to the Elland Road faithful from his hospital bed, promising he "will be back soon", which has come as a huge blow after Ethan Ampadu's injury.

Speaking exclusively to MOT Leeds News, Robinson said: "The pair of them together are a huge blow. Ao Tanaka deserves his chance. It was only going to be a matter of time before he started. I thought he would end up playing with Ampadu as the midfield pairing.

"Ampadu and Gruev out at the same time... I didn't realise Gruev had surgery. That's something I've missed. It's going to be a big miss."

Leeds United without Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev

This is possibly the worst outcome for Daniel Farke, who is attempting to take Leeds back to the Premier League after narrowly missing out on promotion to Southampton in the play-off final last season.

While the German has replacements all over the pitch, especially in attack, the midfield is probably the area with the lowest depth, given Tanaka and Joe Rothwell started against Sunderland on Friday 4 October.

Ampadu, who started every single Championship fixture last term, is not just a miss because of his talents, but also due to the face he has earned the captain's armband, with Leeds now needing a new leader.

It remains to be seen whether the Whites will enter the free-agent transfer market or wait until the January transfer market, but Farke is just one injury or suspension away from a crisis.

In other Leeds United news, Daniel Farke has been backed to make an Illan Meslier decision after his "freak accident".

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