Leeds United are back in action in the Championship this evening as they travel to Bramall Lane to take on second-placed promotion rivals Sheffield United.
The Whites, who beat the Blades 2-0 in the reverse fixture at Elland Road, have the chance to move five points clear of Chris Wilder’s side with a win tonight.
Daniel Farke‘s team come into this huge clash off the back of a brilliantly dramatic win over Sunderland in West Yorkshire last time out in the second tier.
Pascal Struijk came off the bench to score twice against the Black Cats, who had taken the lead through Wilson Isidor, and the Dutch defender should come into the starting XI tonight.
Why Pascal Struijk should start against Sheffield United
The left-footed colossus should come in for several reasons. Firstly, he offers a naturally left-footed centre-back option that Farke does not have with Ethan Ampadu and Joe Rodon together, which opens up more angles to play out from the back down the left side.
Secondly, Struijk, as shown by his heroics last time out, offers a big threat from set-pieces and that can help to decide tight games. He has scored five goals in the Championship this season, including the opener against Sheffield United at Elland Road.
The Dutch ace should also start on defensive merit. Struijk has won 60% of his duels in the league and helped the side to keep 13 clean sheets in 24 starts, which shows that he can be a dominant force at the back for Farke.
Ilia Gruev could drop out, allowing Ampadu to move into midfield, for the centre-back to come in, but he is not the only player who Farke should unleash, as Joe Rothwell should also start.
Why Joe Rothwell should start against Sheffield United
The Bournemouth loanee should be brought into the starting line-up after he was named on the bench for the win over Sunderland, as he came on to change the game last time out.
Like Struijk, Rothwell was integral to both of the goals that turned the match around. He produced a sublime free-kick to tee up the centre-back for his first header, before whipping in a brilliant left-footed cross from open play to assist the winner.
After the match, the Leeds boss described the English gem as a “pure baller” who is “one of the best” players on the ball in the country at his best.
Bringing him into the starting line-up for this game does, however, mean that Farke would have to ruthlessly ditch Ao Tanaka from the side this evening, which may be an easier decision for the German boss after the Japan international’s struggles last time out.
|
Vs Sunderland (H) |
Ao Tanaka |
Joe Rothwell |
|---|---|---|
|
Minutes |
71 |
19 |
|
Pass accuracy |
84% |
100% |
|
Key passes |
1 |
2 |
|
Duels won |
3/8 |
0/0 |
|
Dribbled past |
4x |
0x |
As you can see in the table above, Rothwell offered more in his 19 minutes on the pitch than Tanaka did in the opening 71 minutes, as the midfield ace only created one chance and left a lot to be desired defensively, being dribbled past a whopping four times.
Therefore, it could make sense to rest the Japanese maestro for tonight’s clash with the Blades and, instead, hand the Cherries loanee an opportunity to start after his sensational cameo against Sunderland last Monday.
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Farke must now unleash Leeds’ very own Gustavo Hamer
Leeds United wanted to sign the Sheffield United star last summer.
It will then be down to Rothwell to take his chance and prove to the manager that he deserves to be a regular starter, rather than being in and out of the team.
