Junior Firpo shouldn’t be anywhere near Leeds United starting XI despite what he’s said in Spain
Junior Firpo shouldn’t be anywhere near the Leeds United lineup after he has revealed he is closing in on a return to full fitness.
The 27-year-old told Spanish news outlet Momento Deportivo on Monday (4 September) that he is “almost recovered” from his ligament injury and has “a lot of desire to play with the team again”.
The defender, who admitted in his interview that he is considering switching his international allegiance to the Dominican Republic, hasn’t featured for the Whites yet this season.
Firpo has been at Elland Road for more than two years now after making the switch from Barcelona in July 2021 for a fee in the region of £12.8million plus add-ons.
His time with Leeds hasn’t quite worked out as he would’ve hoped after missing a large chunk of both of those seasons with different injuries.
That has led to his performances on the field suffering, with the left-back struggling to win over the Whites fans – or the managers he’s played under – during his time in West Yorkshire.
He made 25 appearances in all competitions last season, where he scored two goals and laid on two assists as his side were relegated from the Premier League.
He didn’t do much to help Leeds beat the drop with his displays in the league last year after they recorded just one clean sheet with the Dominican-born defender in the starting lineup (SofaScore).
Firpo averaged 1.3 interceptions in his Premier League outings, while he made 2.5 tackles but only won possession back for the team on 0.1 occasions and he was also dribbled past 1.2 times a game.
He was successful in just 50 per cent of the duels he took part in and lost possession 10.3 times per 90 minutes due to his lowly 73 per cent pass accuracy.
The left-back wasn’t much better offensively either, having successfully picked out one of his teammates with just 42 per cent of his crosses, completing 40 per cent of his dribbles and creating just one big chance across the campaign.
Several of the players Firpo played with last season have since moved on after exercising clauses in their contracts, with the defender being linked with a move back to La Liga himself over the summer.
With Firpo admitting that he is close to a return from his injury, there is nothing to suggest he should be anywhere near the starting lineup following his torrid time with the Whites so far.
The one thing going in his favour, however, is that Daniel Farke is short on options at left-back after failing to secure a deal for a left-sided player in the final days of the transfer window.
Firpo will now have to knuckle down and prove to his new manager that he is worthy of a place in the lineup and can be relied upon after previously failing to deliver for the club.
In other Leeds United news, questions remain over one big-money star following his performance against Sheffield Wednesday.