Leeds were unable to improve the mood of their fanbase amid off-field transfer speculation.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Archie Gray has shown promise and deserves more chances to shine in Leeds United’s midfield despite their lack of senior options.
- Off-field speculation surrounding players like Wilfried Gnonto and potential departures has affected Leeds’ performance in their defeat against Birmingham City.
- Leeds missed key attacking options like Gnonto and Summerville, highlighting the need for new signings or the return of injured players to improve their attacking play.
A stoppage-time penalty from Lukas Jutkiewicz secured an impressive 1-0 victory for Birmingham City against visitors Leeds United yesterday afternoon.
The away side wouldn’t have benefitted from off-field speculation before the game, with Wilfried Gnonto making himself unavailable for the clash at St Andrew’s as he looks to secure a move away from Elland Road before the end of the summer transfer window.
Even with this in mind, the visitors were the favourites coming into this game considering they were the side that were in the Premier League last season.
It looked as though the game was heading for a goalless draw until Ethan Laird was clipped in the penalty area by Dan James, with the referee pointing to the spot.
Jutkiewicz made no mistake from 12 yards, consigning Daniel Farke’s side to a depressing defeat.
They must have been hopeful of carrying the momentum they had from the Cardiff City game into this match – but it wasn’t to be and they have won just one point from four in their opening two league games.
Following the game, we take a look at three things we learnt about the Whites.
Archie Gray deserves more chances to shine
The 17-year-old is in the first team due to the fact the Whites don’t have a huge number of senior midfield options.
However, Gray has shown some real promise during the early stages of the campaign, going viral for an excellent turn against Shrewsbury Town on the edge of his own box and proving to be one of Leeds’ better performers today.
In fact, both of the Whites’ midfielders put in respectable shifts, with Ethan Ampadu showing why the club paid so much money to bring him to Elland Road.
With Tyler Adams potentially on his way out of the club before the window closes and Leeds not certain to fully address their midfield area before the summer window closes, Gray could get a decent number of first-team appearances under his belt and should get more opportunities to shine regardless of what happens in the transfer market.
Leeds are suffering from off-field speculation
Although it’s an easy excuse to make for the players who played at St Andrew’s, the Whites probably would have got something from that game if it wasn’t for the off-field speculation surrounding some of their players.
Not only did Gnonto make himself unavailable for the game, but there’s speculation surrounding the futures of Adams, Illan Meslier and Luis Sinisterra.
There was speculation surrounding the absence of the latter, with Farke refusing to give much away when discussing the future of Sinisterra.
That can’t be a good thing for morale and the absence of Gnonto and the Colombian international meant the Whites had less going for them in the final third.
You could say the end of the transfer window can’t come quickly enough for the West Yorkshire side – but they still need plenty of additions before the window closes.
Leeds United missed some of their attacking options
