With the international break drawing to a close, Leeds United are preparing for the Premier League’s return. All the players that reported for international duty are expected at Thorp Arch soon.
The Whites had some cause for concern when Joe Rodon pulled out of the Wales squad, but it was then revealed that he had a concussion and had to miss the game. He will be fine to return to action this weekend. Gabriel Gudmundsson also recovered from a knock to feature in both games for Sweden.
Bulgaria midfielder Ilia Gruev was in the headlines these past 24 hours. There are reports of a locker room spat with his team mates and the head coach after the 3-0 loss to Spain. Head Coach Illian Illiev also revealed that the Leeds star played the second half of the Georgia game.
QUIZ: Can you name the missing sponsor on these 10 Leeds United shirts?
[freshpress-quiz id=”32660″]
Leeds United star singled out once again
Credit: Imago
Leeds defender Jaka Bijol was in action for Slovenia once again on Monday night. After his performance against Sweden, he was singled out as one of the least impressive performers on the pitch on matchday. Everything was set for him to bounce back against Switzerland.
But things did not go as planned. Bijol was once again indirectly at fault for a goal, and committed needless fouls throughout the game. He also had a tough time with the Swiss attack, including Bree Embolo who scored on the night. Sportsduna rated Bijol poorly, labelling him ”one of the worst performers on the pitch”:
”Seemed to be at the heart of Slovenia’s defensive collapse. He gave away the corner for the first goal and struggled immensely with the physicality of Embolo. He committed four fouls and looked rattled throughout. Easily the worst performer on the pitch.”
Question marks over Bijol already
One bad performance this international break can easily be written off, but two is quite a concern. Many fans have been wondering why his game time has been limited this season and with these recent performances, it may show why Daniel Farke is reluctant to hand him starts. Hopefully he shakes off the cobwebs when he returns to West Yorkshire later this week.
