Fifteen days between matches for Leeds United has given Jesse Marsch his longest uninterrupted spell on the training ground with his new players and a free weekend opened up a window for a Thorp Arch test match. With less than a handful of players away with their countries, Marsch had the majority of his roster at the training ground during the break, though injuries and Covid prevented everyone from getting onto the field at the same time.
Without the intensity of a match to keep their legs ticking over, the head coach put together a 45-minute game which boiled down to the first team against the under-23s at Thorp Arch. Just the 12 goals in 45 minutes flew past the goalkeepers involved as the senior faces, predictably, ran up a gaping scoreline which brought several names to the fore for Marsch.
Speaking about Joe Gelhardt’s role in Patrick Bamford’s absence, the head coach admitted the teenager had caught the eye in the practice game. Liam Cooper and Kalvin Phillips, who are in contention for tomorrow, also impressed.
“I believe in him (Gelhardt) entirely and I know he's going to get better and better,” he said. “When we had a little bit of a test match on Friday he played really well.
“We played, basically, the first team against the 23s for 45 minutes, which Kalvin and Liam both played 45 minutes in that stretch, and at the end of the 45 minutes it was 10-2 and Joffy played great in that moment.
“He had a goal or two and, you know, I mean, it was a strong performance from the front four guys. They were incredibly powerful and direct and aggressive.”
Raphinha has been in the headlines more than any Leeds player across the past fortnight as incessant transfer links with Barcelona were published by the press in Spain. Marsch did not hide from the noise and even reiterated just how special the Brazilian had looked in the test match off the back of his Covid diagnosis before the Wolverhampton Wanderers win.
“Speaking about this test match, little game we had, Raphinha was incredible in the 45 minutes,” he said. “He, for me, is a massive talent, a massive talent.”
