Leeds United defender Leo Hjelde could be handed start v Manchester United
Leeds United defender Leo Hjelde could start against Manchester United in place of Stuart Dallas, according to LeedsLive.
The versatile Whites ace was taken off after 9 minutes in the 3-0 defeat against Everton.
With Junior Firpo not guaranteed to be available, Marcelo Bielsa could turn his attentions to Hjelde.
The 18-year-old is yet to make a Premier League start and could be handed one against one of his side’s fiercest rivals.
Good move?
Leeds have been plagued with injuries since the start of the season so this does not come as a surprise.
What is surprising is that they failed to address their squad depth issues in January.
Knowing that they were likely to have a defensive crisis, they still opted to allow Cody Drameh to leave on loan.
Should neither Firpo or Dallas be available, Hjelde appears to be the only sensible option the Whites can deploy in the back four.
While he is a centre-back by trade, he knows how Bielsa wants players man-marked all over the pitch and he would be required to perform similar duties from the left-back position.
There are no guarantees that such a system will work as we’re yet to see how Hjelde fares in the Premier League, let alone as a left-back.
The recruitment since the summer has been woeful, to say the least, and Bielsa has to deal with players from the academy rather than having an embarrassment of riches.
In other Leeds United news, an ‘Exciting’ Whites player may seek Elland Road exit after Wednesday’s Phil Hay update