The March international break wasn’t a positive one for Leeds United, as it was a period which saw several of their first team players pick up injuries.
The first victim was midfielder Tyler Adams, who missed the Whites’ last Premier League game before the break in action – a 2-4 win against relegation rivals Wolves – due to a hamstring issue picked up in midweek training before the fixture.
It was then confirmed during the international break that Adams had undergone surgery to resolve the issue – a procedure that set back his return to an unknown date.
Then came injuries to forward Wilfried Gnonto and centre-back Max Wober: an ankle sprain and a thigh issue picked up when representing their countries – Italy and Austria respectively.
The status of these injuries was understandably a hot topic for Leeds boss Javi Gracia in his pre-Arsenal press conference today, and the 52-year-old duly delivered an update.
“Tyler we’ll see his evolution, after his surgery we’ll see if he can play any games this season. We take it day by day. Wober and Gnonto, hamstring and ankle injuries, they need time to recover, they are out of the team,” Gracia said (as per Yorkshire Evening Post).
Whilst all three of these players will not be fit to face table topping Arsenal at the Emirates this Saturday – Gracia confirmed a slight boost in the return to fitness of club captain Liam Cooper.
“Liam is ready, of course. All of us could see the game, I suffered a little bit but I enjoyed because I could see Liam competing again. I’m sure in this moment of the season we need all the players ready. With the busy schedule we need all of them.”
With this update, Leeds’ trip to North London on Saturday has just become much more daunting, as they seek any sort of positive result to pull them further away from the relegation zone.
