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Matthew Hobkinson

Jack Harrison can repeat Chelsea heroics to reinvigorate Leeds United form in relegation battle

As the full-time whistle goes at Elland Road, Jack Harrison walks off the pitch with a goal and an assist - his third in as many games - to his name during a 3-0 win for Leeds United against Chelsea back in August.

Having scored eight top-flight goals last term, not many people would have believed you if you would have told them he would then go on a six-month spell without finding the back of the net again in the Premier League.

Yet that is exactly the situation that Harrison currently finds himself in.

ALSO READ: Chelsea's major issue can give Leeds United hope for Premier League clash

The man who was so nearly a Leicester City player on deadline day in January, is now trying to show his teeth in the final-third in Leeds' battle against relegation.

His deft flick to set up Junior Firpo's winning goal over Southampton was his eighth assist across all competitions this term - yet it somewhat papered over some of the cracks in his performance overall.

His display against Everton the weekend before also sent alarm bells as a handful of set-pieces went to waste, with the Toffees managing to dispossess the 26-year-old at will. Always a willing runner with plenty of fluid movement, yet there has been a lack of bite to his bark of late.

Against Accrington Stanley, Harrison sent a reminder to everyone of exactly what he is capable of with a stinging drive into the bottom corner. Javi Gracia will certainly not be asking, or expecting, him to repeat that every match, yet his end product has all but disappeared in recent weeks.

And given the nature of the Fulham defeat, lacking an end product is something that Leeds cannot afford to repeat for the remainder of the season - a concept that Jesse Marsch will be all too familiar with.

So, a trip to Stamford Bridge awaits the Whites next, a side who know a thing or two when it comes to poor form in front of goal. Leeds have outscored the Blues this season 29 to 23, with Graham Potter's side only finding the back of the net on four occasions this calendar year.

Marsch and Thomas Tuchel have both come and gone from the two clubs since that meeting at the beginning of this term, as Gracia and Potter are both in desperate need of victory on Saturday for very different reasons.

The Leeds coach is a self-confessed student of the game and spent hours poring over footage of the Saints prior matches ahead of their trip to Elland Road. If Gracia is to dig out old clips of the 3-0 win over Chelsea, he will see Harrison spending the afternoon toying with Reece James on the way to his goal and assist.

The former Watford boss may well wonder where that player has gone, as he weighs up whether to take the risk and start a man who seems short on ideas at the moment.

If Harrison does get the nod, he will know that there has never been a better time to show his new manager, his teammates and the fans why he can still be a vital part of their fight against relegation - before it's too late.

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