Phil Hay identifies Leeds United ‘problem’ ahead of Norwich City play-off clash
Phil Hay believes starting Liam Cooper would be a “big risk” ahead of a highly anticipated play-off semi-final between Leeds United and Norwich City on Sunday (12 May).
The Scottish centre-back has made just 15 Championship appearances this season, with only eight of them being starts, having been replaced by Ethan Ampadu in defence.
The Whites, however, have not been as watertight as they had been earlier in the campaign, conceding 10 goals in their last four matches.
It was put to Hay that Leeds might need to move Ampadu back into midfielder for the first leg at Carrow Road but the Athletic journalist was not entirely convinced.
Speaking via The Square Ball podcast on Friday (10 May), Hay said: “The problem is that if it’s not Ampadu [at centre-back], it’s going to be Cooper.
“When Cooper was put in against Watford, it didn’t work. Leeds conceded twice. The second goal had Cooper claiming for offside with people behind him – the structure had gone.
“The thing about Cooper is there are people who don’t rate him. I think that over the years, most of the criticism has been pretty unfair. But at this stage in his career, he’s not someone who is going to benefit from hardly playing.
“To pitch him in for the first leg of a play-off semi-final seems like a big risk to me. The Ampadu and Rodon combination, and the defence in general, has not worked as well in recent weeks – that’s obvious.
“But it was very good. You need to have faith in things that work. You could gamble on [Mateo] Joseph up front, Ampadu in midfield, make all sorts of changes because nothing has quite worked.”
Could Daniel Farke start Liam Cooper in Leeds United v Norwich City?
Most fans at Elland Road will be praying not to see Cooper in the starting XI when Leeds face the Canaries at Carrow Road on Sunday.
The veteran has been a long-standing servant at the club since arriving from Chesterfield in the summer of 2014, making a total of 283 appearances.
Of course, his wisdom and experiences will be needed if the Whites are to secure promotion to the Premier League through the play-offs, though this should probably stay in the changing rooms.
The centre-back partnership of Rodon and Ampadu has worked wonders this season, and just because they narrowly missed out on automatic promotion, Daniel Farke should not be under pressure to completely switch up his approach.
Although there is no doubt that Cooper was once a superb centre-back option, at 32 years of age now, his better days are behind him and starting him against Norwich could cause more chaos than fix problems.
As Hay spoke about, the player’s last start came against Watford in March, a game where his weaknesses were highlighted as the opposition’s pace was far too much for him to handle.
The Canaries have similar players, probably with even more talent, which could be devastating during the Championship play-off semi-final first leg.
In other Leeds United news, a teenage sensation is now set to snub Manchester United in order to move to Elland Road.
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