Jesse Marsch coined the term 'leadership council' in one of his first press conferences as Leeds United head coach. The American appointed seven first-team players to the group: Liam Cooper, Luke Ayling, Stuart Dallas, Adam Forshaw, Patrick Bamford, Kalvin Phillips and Rodrigo Moreno.
The youngest member is Phillips at 26, while the oldest is Rodrigo at 31. All seven could be considered players in their 'peak years' as professional footballers. It is little surprise to see the club captain named amongst a select group dubbed dressing room leaders, however the manner in which Marsch navigates his latest team selection dilemma will be interesting.
Whether he calls on the advice and support of the leadership council, or shares his musings exclusively with his coaching staff will be of particular interest, considering the dilemma affects a key member of the leadership group: Liam Cooper. This season, the well-respected captain has only featured in 15 league matches, blighted by a hamstring injury suffered in early December.
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The Scottish international is nearing a return, with a club statement revealing that Cooper, Phillips and Diego Llorente had all trained with the first-team squad last week: "Kalvin Phillips, Liam Cooper and Diego Llorente have all trained this week and will currently be available to play minutes against Southampton."
In his place at left-sided centre-back has been Pascal Struijk for the majority of the past three months. The Dutchman is highly-regarded at the club and has performed well in recent weeks, leaving Marsch with a decision to make.
Robin Koch is once again available, introduced from the bench in the win over Wolves, while Diego Llorente - as stated above - is also in contention this weekend. While the continental pair are typically right-sided central defenders, Marsch has, for the first time since his arrival, all four senior centre-backs at his disposal. Adding Charlie Cresswell to the equation after his display against Wolves means Marsch has five players ready-made for a role at the heart of the back four.
During Marcelo Bielsa's three-and-a-half year tenure as Leeds United boss, Liam Cooper was a constant in the starting XI, whenever he was available. Even on his return from various injuries, Cooper made immediate comebacks to the starting line-up on all but one occasion. The 30-year-old was never named on the bench in consecutive league matches. Of course at Molineux, Cooper was an unused substitute, meaning under the previous regime the body of evidence would suggest he returns this weekend, from the start.
Under Jesse Marsch, there is no guarantee of this and the American may choose to retain Struijk as his left-sided central defender, arguing there is little reason to change a winning team after the Whites recorded two victories in-a-row for the first time this season. Whether Marsch elects to break Bielsa's golden rule is a question which will be answered on Saturday afternoon.
