Live from Hillsborough: First sighting of Augustin all but confirms Bamford will start v Forest
By Mark Smith at Hillsborough
The anticipation was clear to see on Monday afternoon as Jean-Kevin Augustin made his debut for Leeds United in the under-23s.
Carlos Corberan handed the Frenchman his first start for the Whites, with Ryan Edmondson fully missing in South Yorkshire. There were a number of first-team faces in the squad, with Ian Poveda, Gaetano Berardi, and Jamie Shackleton all coming on.
Augustin started very slowly, and early signs highlighted that the 22-year-old could have arrived at Elland Road somewhat overweight.
The RB Leipzig loanee struggled to hold up the ball in the first 20 minutes of the game and slowly made his way into proceedings. It was clear to see that he loves to get in behind defences, nearly opening the scoring but for a great save by Joe Wildsmith.
There was fear surrounding every Whites fan watching the game just before the break, as Augustin stayed down after a challenge. He limped off to the sidelines before disappearing down the tunnel – not reappearing.
Leeds tweeted a picture of the striker after the game, with the French youngster holding up both his thumbs and smiling after completing 45 minutes.
Many fans reacted to his performance after the 2-2 draw, with the majority pointing out that Marcelo Bielsa could want his new signing to lose weight before putting him into the Championship action.
We spoke to Corberan after the game, and the Spaniard confirmed that Augustin should be good to get straight back into training on Tuesday.
Patrick Bamford will have been keeping a close eye over the proceedings, and he will be able to rest easy knowing that he should get another start against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
The 26-year-old certainly struggled against Wigan on Saturday, having seven attempts on goal according to WhoScored – once again failing to find the back of the net.
He has only scored two in six matches, and that is form that would get any other striker dropped. The performance, potential knock and more importantly the physique of Augustin all but confirmed that Bamford will be given yet another chance at the City Ground.
In other Leeds United news, Corberan has delivered a key injury update on the fitness of JKA after the 2-2 draw