Dominic Calvert-Lewin had a Leeds United debut to forget on Tuesday night against Sheffield Wednesday. He missed a couple of good chances and ended up skying his penalty as the Whites crashed out of the EFL Cup in the second round at Hillsborough.
Leeds secured the arrival of Dominic Calvert-Lewin on a free transfer just days before the start of their new season. He didn’t feature in the first two Premier League games as Daniel Farke wanted the 28-year-old striker to build up his fitness ahead of making his debut for the Yorkshire giants.
Calvert-Lewin made his debut for Leeds at Hillsborough when he came on to replace Lukas Nmecha in the second half, but produced a worrying and lacklustre performance in his first game for his new club this season.
The former Everton striker missed a couple of gilt-edged opportunities, but then the nadir of the performance came when he missed from the spot during the penalty shootout as Leeds crashed out of the cup tournament against Championship opponents.
Can you name these 10 former Leeds United goalkeepers?
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Gabby Agbonlahor has come to the defence of Leeds United striker Calvert-Lewin
Calvert-Lewin has come under criticism since last night because of his performance, but Gabby Agbonlahor has come to defend the forward today.
The former Aston Villa forward argued it was only natural for the 28-year-old to look rusty, given his injury struggles at Everton and lack of regular football over the past year.
He believes the former Everton star will be in much better shape to deliver the goods for Leeds once he gets another month to work on his fitness and plays in a few Under-23 games to hone his match sharpness.
“He missed a few chances, but you can’t criticise someone who hasn’t played much football in the last year”, Agbonlahor said on talkSPORT.
“Injury problems at Everton, he has gone to a new club, and you have got a few idiots online who are laughing at him because he missed a couple of sitters, and skied his penalty.
“But it is going to take probably a month, maybe play in a few Under-23 games, and I am sure then that he will be in a better position to help Leeds United.”
Leeds need one more striker
Daniel Farke wants to bring in two more attackers before the end of the transfer window, but it is clear, one of them needs to be a striker.
Calvert-Lewin has looked rusty, and his injury record suggests Leeds cannot rely on him to remain fit for an entire Premier League campaign.
Lukas Nmecha also had injury issues over the last couple of seasons, and it seems certain that Leeds do not have a reliable battery of strikers for the top flight.
Farke is desperate to add one more striker to his squad before the window closes on Monday night.
