Leeds United: Daniel Farke must drag off Joel Piroe at half-time v Plymouth
Leeds United boss Daniel Farke must quickly hook off Joel Piroe at half-time against Plymouth after yet another lacklustre display.
By fighting back to earn a 1-1 draw in their original FA Cup fourth-round tie, the Pilgrims forced a replay against the Whites at Home Park on Tuesday (6 February).
A trip to Premier League territory awaits the victor of the midweek battle, as either Chelsea or Aston Villa will be lying in wait for a fifth-round showdown.
Farke made some telling changes for the clash, handing Mateo Joseph his second-ever Leeds start and also giving Piroe and Jaidon Anthony starts in a much-changed attack.
Both teams had chances to take the lead at Home Park with the away side hitting the crossbar on two occasions through Matoe Joseph and Piroe.
Plymouth had clear-cut opportunities of their own and Leeds United had Sam Byram to thank after some excellent last-ditch defending preventing Callum Wright from turning in a cross at the back post.
Piroe lacking inspiration yet again
There’s a reason why Patrick Bamford has been the regular go-to man for Farke in recent weeks at Elland Road and that isn’t just down to the Englishman’s brilliant goalscoring form.
It’s also down to Piroe’s lacklustre display in a Whites shirt with the Elland Road summer signing scoring just once in his last 10 games.
The former Swansea City man is supposed to be one the deadliest forwards in the Championship but he’s so far looked like a man that’s fallen off a cliff and that was shown against Plymouth yet again.
The 24-year-old was handed the joint-worst score of any Leeds United player in the first half against Plymouth, as per SofaScore, failing to register a single key pass, failing to complete any of his dribble attempts, winning just one of his four total duels.
The Dutchman was rather unlucky when he hit the crossbar after a great shot from outside the box but that was about it from him, proving wasteful with several of his final-third passes.
With Bamford and Georginio Rutter who have been absolutely flawless in recent weeks for Farke, waiting in the wings for the second half, Farke must quickly drag off Piroe who’s been rather woeful yet again.
In other Leeds United news, Sam Byram has opened up about his future at Elland Road as he nears the end of his contract
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