Ilia Gruev may finally be given second chance at Leeds United after Daniel Farke update emerges
There are few periods of the Championship season as congested as the Christmas period and for the first time in a couple of seasons, Leeds United are facing just that.
The Whites have found themselves in a race for automatic promotion, currently sitting 10 points behind second-placed Ipswich Town and 11 away from table toppers Leicester City, but the next weeks present an opportunity to close that gap.
Between now and the 1 January, Daniel Farke’s side plays four times and the German knows that he is going to have to rotate his squad given the quick turnaround, with Phil Hay reporting that there will be changes made across the next four matches.
Writing on Twitter (21 December) he said: “Farke saying we’ll see rotation of his line-up during these four games. The schedule means mixing it up will be important.”
This could mean that the next couple of weeks present opportunities for some of the lesser-spotted Leeds United stars to stake their claim on a starting XI place and one man who will be hoping he gets a chance at Elland Road will be Ilia Gruev.
Leed shelled out a reported £4 million on the Bulgarian international during the summer transfer window [Daily Mail, 31 August] but he has failed to match that price tag so far at Elland Road, making a single Championship start in the opening 22 games of the campaign.
Across his solitary start and seven substitute appearances, the 23-year-old has played 97 minutes of football in England, but that could be about to change over the next few days following Farke’s latest comments about rotation.
Farke was also quick to mention during his press conference that Leeds had to be careful with Ethan Ampadu throughout these next four matches as the Welsh international has played every minute of the Whites’ campaign so far [Phil Hay].
If the German rests Ampadu, Gruev would be a natural replacement. The 23-year-old has experience at the highest level, on top of his 14 international caps he made 31 appearances in the Bundesliga last season.
With a run of games at Elland Road he’d be capable of matching the standard of the Championship, he just needs to be given that responsibility.
Hopefully, Gruev will be given a proper run out between now and the new year, that way Leeds can decide whether they need to add to their midfield ranks again in January, or whether they have enough quality to tide them over until the end of the season.
In other Leeds United news, reports have suggested that Borussia Dortmund are seriously considering a move for Gray this January