Paul Robinson: Kalvin Phillips could play at centre-back in Leeds United v West Ham
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.
Kalvin Phillips is likely to play at centre-back for Leeds United when they play West Ham on Saturday, according to Paul Robinson.
Marcelo Bielsa has a selection headache as it stands with Pascal Struijk, Diego Llorente and Robin Koch all out of the Elland Road showdown with Luke Ayling a doubt.
Charlie Cresswell stands a chance of playing at centre-back after he played there against Fulham on Tuesday.
However, if Ayling is ruled out then Robinson believes Phillips will play alongside Liam Cooper at the back against West Ham.
Speaking to MOT Leeds News, Robinson said: “Kalvin Phillips played there against Fulham so I think if Ayling’s not fit at the weekend, we might see Kalvin play at centre-back. Or you could see Bielsa play a back-three.
“It would be nice to see the youngsters given an opportunity but from what we know about Bielsa, he sticks with his experienced players.”
Leeds are weakened whenever they do not have Phillips playing in the holding midfield role.
It’s also concerning that this weekend, in-form striker Michail Antonio is expected to be back in action for West Ham at Elland Road.
Koch and Llorente have regularly been injured and that’s starting to become a major problem now.
Next summer might be time for the club to try and shift one of those injury-prone players on and find someone who’s more reliable.
In other Leeds United news, a Premier League debut has been mooted for this youngster at the weekend.