Raphinha possibly injured after being withdrawn in Leeds 3-2 loss v Chelsea
Leeds United forward Raphinha was withdrawn for Joe Gelhardt with eight minutes left during Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
According to Sky Sports, the Brazilian “might have a knock” in today’s (11 December) game and that could be a blow for Marcelo Bielsa’s side as they are already without Patrick Bamford, Liam Cooper and Kalvin Phillips.
Nothing official has emerged on Raphinha yet as it could take a scan before Leeds know if he could miss action for a while should he indeed be injured.
Sky Sports posted on their website during the live text commentary of the game in the 83rd minute: “Another Leeds sub – Raphinha off, Gelhardt on.
“Bit of concern over Raphinha, who might have a knock.”
Massive blow?
Phillips and Cooper are out for the long-term while Bamford could return very soon, and while the Whites coped very well in their absence against the Blues, being without Raphinha would be a massive blow.
Leeds travel to the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday (14 December) to face Manchester City before a clash against Arsenal on Saturday (18 December), and they cannot afford to be without the influential Brazilian in attack.
He has bagged seven goals and an assist in 14 games in the 2021-22 Premier League campaign, and he is one of the reasons why the Yorkshire giants are not currently in a relegation battle.
Raphinha has missed just two league games this season, and it is not a surprise that they have relied a lot on him given his extraordinary quality.
He has been involved in exactly half of the 16 goals they have managed to bag so far, and they will be hoping he is fine to return to action very soon.
Injuries have derailed Leeds campaign in 2021-22, and they cannot afford to lose another key player to the treatment table.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites have mapped out plans to avoid relegation scrap as January transfer budget claim emerges.