MOT View: Bielsa decision on XI fully justified as rarely-seen Leeds player proves boss right
Jean-Kevin Augustin is yet to start a game since joining Leeds United on loan from RB Leipzig in the summer, leading to some criticism being aimed at Marcelo Bielsa.
The 22-year-old striker arrived at Elland Road as a player who’d scored in the Bundesliga, Ligue 1 and Champions League but, as it stands, he is yet to really impress in the Championship for Leeds.
Of course, he has not really had much of a chance to shine but the stats in his most recent display at Bristol City on Saturday suggest that Bielsa’s decision on Augustin is fully justified.
According to WhoScored, Augustin touched the ball just five times in his 15 minutes on the pitch at Elland Road on Saturday.
He failed to attempt any passes to his team-mates, was dispossessed once and his only shot at goal went wide of the target.
Patrick Bamford is currently the striker who is keeping Augustin out of the side and even though he is finding it tough to score himself lately, he is at least having more of an impact in the Whites’ attack.
Bamford had 24 touches against Bristol City before being replaced by Augustin in the 75th minute, meaning that his touch-per-minute ratio was fairly similar to the Frenchman’s.
But Bamford still managed to attempt 17 passes, have two shots at goal – one of which being on target – and completed the one dribble he attempted.
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Sure, Bamford’s stats are not great but they are still proving to be better than Augustin’s.
The former PSG striker is yet to really prove he is up to speed with Bielsa’s tactics and there have to be doubts surrounding his matches fitness too.
Bamford knows the system, we know he’s fully fit and we also know that he’s bound to find his goalscoring boots at some point.
In other Leeds United news, Keith Andrews has been critical of this Leeds outfield ace.