Leeds United handed welcome boost ahead of Aston Villa after injury scare and fitness questions
Leeds United's international stars are on their way back to West Yorkshire as focus now turns to the Premier League and Aston Villa.
Daniel Farke will have been delighted to see his regular Leeds United starters enjoy reduced international minutes on Tuesday evening.
Every first-team squad member has now completed their November international commitments and barring any unseen issues, all look to have come through unscathed. Gabriel Gudmundsson was the only injury scare after missing a Sweden training session last week but he’s since played twice, a suggestion any minor issue has been shaken off.
On Tuesday, Gudmundsson came off bench for the second time during this break in a 1-1 draw at home to Slovenia. The game was effectively a dead-rubber, with neither qualifying for the World Cup, and Leeds’ left-back was handed a 26-minute cameo, taking his total minutes to 67 for the November break.
Jaka Bijol and Ilia Gruev both played the full 90 minutes for their respective nations, the former coming up against Gudmundsson as part of a struggling Slovenia outfit. Gruev’s Bulgaria beat Georgia 2-1 in their final qualifier but were already effectively out of the process having failed to pick up a single point beforehand.
Further afield, Brenden Aaronson followed up a 79-minute weekend appearance for the USA against Paraguay with a late cameo off the bench in his side’s thrashing of Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay. Mauricio Pochettino’s side were 5-1 up by the time Leeds’ winger was introduced on 75 minutes, with nothing of note taking place in those final exchanges.
Leeds United stars on way back to Thorp Arch ahead of Aston Villa
Wales grabbed the headlines on Tuesday with their 7-1 thumping of North Macedonia in which Dan James scored to help secure a World Cup play-off spot. The tricky winger started his second game of the break but was once again removed just after the hour mark, having enjoyed a similar run out against Liechtenstein on Saturday.
Karl Darlow and Joe Rodon also started at the Cardiff City stadium, with the latter substituted on 81 minutes. Midfielder Ethan Ampadu had the night off entirely after a yellow card against Liechtenstein earned him a one-match suspension.
Earlier on Tuesday, Ao Tanaka was rested entirely as Japan won a friendly against Bolivia 3-0 in Tokyo. The midfielder played 68 minutes against Ghana in his nation’s first game but should have enjoyed plenty of recovery time, albeit a 14-hour flight back to the UK could prove problematic.
Leeds return to action at home to Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon, hoping to leave consecutive away defeats at Brighton and Nottingham Forest in the rear-view mirror. Farke will be delighted to see the majority of his first-team regulars enjoy some kind of rest during the Tuesday international fixtures.
How those players report back at Thorp Arch will help influence Farke’s thinking when it comes to naming a starting line-up, with some important calls to make in key positions. Bijol’s recent struggles have encouraged calls for the return of Pascal Struijk while clamour is also intensifying for James to replace Aaronson at right-wing.