Who wears the gloves?
Joel Robles has started the first two public friendlies, but Kristoffer Klaesson made a faster-than-anticipated return to the squad on Friday night. The Norwegian was even given the second half of the Real Sociedad clash.
When Robles arrived it was made clear to him and to the public, by Jesse Marsch, he was the experienced, third-choice goalkeeper brought in to mainly be a mentor behind the scenes. There has been nothing on the record to suggest Klaesson has slipped behind Robles beyond the cup match at Molineux last month.
It will be interesting to see which way Marsch goes between the sticks against Monaco. That’s all assuming Illan Meslier hasn’t made a miraculous recovery either.
READ MORE: Tyler Adams taking extended Leeds United rest as he shakes off World Cup injury
Centre-back combination
Diego Llorente and Robin Koch each played a part in the open training session at Elland Road on Tuesday night. If they are both available they will need minutes to make up for lost time.
Liam Cooper sat out the training session, but was at the stadium and looking well. The assumption is the captain has to play if fit, but how does Marsch play his other cards?
Koch is seen as the first choice for the Manchester City match, but Llorente needs minutes too. Junior Firpo was also training at Elland Road, so if he is fit to play a match Pascal Struijk might get a breather.
Central midfield conundrum
With one week to go until the City match, Marsch has a final decision to make on his Tyler Adams replacement. Adam Forshaw has been the smart-money bet throughout the break, but it’s fair to say he has been very rusty in the two friendlies up to now.
The number four’s absence from Tuesday’s training session means he’s either injured, an injury risk or avoiding anything too strenuous before Wednesday’s match. Marsch will need to see some rapid improvement from Forshaw before the champions visit, or even give Sam Greenwood a proper go alongside Marc Roca.
Youth gets a chance?
Rene Maric suggested the staff would look to get every member of the squad up to the same level by the end of the Monaco clash. There are quite a few younger faces lagging behind in minutes played this month if that’s what he was getting at.
Mateo Joseph, Cody Drameh, Darko Gyabi and Sonny Perkins all need pitch time if they are to be in the same space as their more experienced teammates. Does Marsch go that rogue with his selection and really show how much he trusts in the depth of this squad?
Injury situation
The big bonuses on Tuesday night were the inclusion of Koch, Firpo and Llorente in training, signalling their availability for tonight, but there were 10 absentees from the open session. Forshaw, Patrick Bamford, Stuart Dallas and Mateusz Klich were not seen at all, while some others did show their faces, if not their boots.
Meslier, Cooper, Crysencio Summerville, Jack Harrison, Adams and Luis Sinisterra were at least in the stadium, but not all of them are going to be available to play tonight. The squad selection and then Maric post-match will give us the latest.
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