Daniel Feliciano

Fri 6 October 2023 18:10, UK

Leeds United could be forced to into changing their usual formation after Daniel Farke shared injury updates on Jamie Shackleton and Sam Byram.

The Whites host Bristol City at Elland Road on Saturday afternoon ahead of the international break and will be without Shackleton who has a shoulder injury, while a late decision will be made on Byram as the club are unsure if he is fit enough for three games in a week.

And manager Farke admitted in his pre-match press conference (6 October) that if the experienced full-back is unavailable then he may be forced to switch formation to deal with the issue.

“Not a huge amount [of options] but we’ll have options on the pitch,” he said.

“We might have to change a player who is not used to playing such a situation. It would be tricky.

“If everything was so easy it would be so boring. We’re working on some options.”

Blow

Leeds have finally been able to get a real foundation on the pitch, and most fans are able to name Farke’s preferred lineup and know exactly where players will be fielded.

So if the club need to switch the formation for such a big game then it would be a massive blow for their chances in what will no doubt be a tough game.

It also begs a question on the future of Leo Hjelde at the club as he is a natural left-back and hasn’t been mentioned as an option, which suggests he could be out of the manager’s plans and a January exit could be on the cards.

The likeliest option is that Byram comes into the side and plays considering there are two weeks of rest and no games ahead of him, but there is also the option of moving Pascal Struijk across to the left and for Liam Cooper to partner Joe Rodon in the middle.

There are options for Farke, but it will be interesting to see how the boss decides to proceed for such a big game.

In other Leeds news, Farke drops “bad news” ahead of big Championship clash v Bristol City.