Predicted Leeds XI v Salford
A Carabao Cup game against Salford on Tuesday gives Marcelo Bielsa the opportunity to shake things up and give game-time to some of the promising youngsters bubbling under the surface at Elland Road.
It’s also the perfect opportunity to see what new striker signing Eddie Nketiah is made of.
League 2 club Salford will be bang up for the game – it’s the biggest of their history and the Class of ’92 connection adds an extra edge to proceedings.
However, they’re weak opposition and perfect for Nketiah to get himself off the mark against and build his confidence up.
He played no part in the game on Saturday – a 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest – because he’d done no training with the side.
Talking after the game Marcelo Bielsa said “Maybe he [Nketiah] plays on Tuesday. He didn’t do any training with the team until now. I prefer to wait a little bit to say if he’s going to play on Tuesday.” [Leeds Live]
That’s not a definitive verdict but it’s surely the perfect time for him to make his bow. Especially as Leeds continue to struggle in front of goal.
Goalkeeper Illan Meslier, Pascal Struijk and Robbie Gotts should make their debuts, too, along with Mateusz Bogusz. The 17-year-old has impressed with the Under-23s and we’d love to see what he can do in the first team.
This is the side we think Bielsa will put out on Tuesday:
