View: Struijk set to start for Leeds after key Cooper update
Pascal Struijk is almost certain to start for Leeds United against Fulham alongside Diego Llorente on Friday night.
That would have been cause for worry among Leeds fans earlier in the season but they’re likely to be delighted to see his name on the teamsheet after his recent performances.
Liam Cooper missed the Chelsea game after rumours grew on Saturday morning that he had suffered something to do with Covid.
That wasn’t confirmed, with Bielsa saying after the game that he had been ruled out with an illness. [Leeds Live]
Leeds have a policy of not commenting on Covid-related issues with players which seems to be counter-intuitive to us.
It just leads to more talk and speculation. And, in the case of Cooper, it does seem the most likely explanation.
Steve Clarke issued an update on Cooper on Tuesday after leaving him out of the Scotland squad.
He said that he wouldn’t be available for the first two of the three international games, but could have been back for the third. He said that after discussion with Cooper they decided it was best to leave him out of the squad.
The second Scotland game is March 28, 15 days after the Chelsea game was played. The third game is three days later.
Such a specific timescale seems to say that it’s Covid-related and it certainly gives us all but official confirmation from Leeds that he won’t be playing on Friday.
That would have been a real issue earlier in the season.
However, now, with Diego Llorente back, Struijk playing well at centre-back and Robin Koch looking good for the Under-23s this week, it shouldn’t be an issue.
Struijk has been a real revelation this season.
Thrown in at the deep end against Liverpool in the first game of the season because of injuries, Struijk has also been tasked with playing the Kalvin Phillips position.
He really struggled with this and was taken off after just 21 minutes in the game against Aston Villa back in October.
That would have been a huge body blow for a lot of 21-year-olds on the fringes of a side, but Struijk is obviously made of stern stuff.
He’s been really impressing at centre-back in recent weeks and he provides a towering presence that Leeds have been missing since Pontus Jansson left the club.
He’s also made the headlines after Roberto Martinez made a play for him to switch his international allegiance to Belgium ahead of the Euros this summer. That’s something that Struijk has resisted so far. [Leeds Live]
Starring for Leeds in the Premier League and saying no to the best international side in the world – not bad for a 21-year-old.
In other Leeds United news, Leeds loanee sends big message to Bielsa as goals continue to flow in new position