Leeds United may need cages rattling and Javi Gracia…

Leeds United may need cages rattling and Javi Gracia breaking with his tradition

Eleven goals shipped across two matches with a small combination of 13 players starting in both has to mean changes this weekend. Javi Gracia has to rattle some cages, point fingers, let some players know they are nowhere near it and show the supporters he hears their anger.

Gracia has been on the record in the past with his preference for keeping his volume down and speaking with clarity and calmness. Some players, given what's gone on in the last two, may get more from a dressing down, some passion, anger or emotion.

There is no sense in playing to the crowd and bowing to public opinion for the sake of it, which, as his reluctant press against Brighton & Hove Albion showed, is not Gracia’s style anyway. However, there has been more than enough evidence over the past three halves played to see a good number of those who featured look shot to pieces.

The 4-3-3 Gracia employed at Craven Cottage in the FA Cup in February worked quite well. It was another loss for Leeds United that night, but it took two world-class Fulham finishes and a raft of typically wasteful deliveries and shots from the visitors to make it so.

The major difference is Tyler Adams will not be available on Saturday, as he was in the cup, making that midfield three a tougher ask. Jack Harrison played well off the left of a midfield trio at Arsenal and being shuffled back again could then pave the way for Wilfried Gnonto’s long overdue return to the starting line-up.

The biggest questions, predictably, are in defence. How far does Gracia dare go in his overhaul of a backline which has seen the last 10 shots faced on target hit the back of the net?

The narrative around Illan Meslier has only gone one way off the back of Monday night, but can Gracia put all of that credit in the bank with the Frenchman to one side and risk Joel Robles shipping two or three? Rasmus Kristensen hardly grasped his opportunity after Luke Ayling was finally taken out of the side against Liverpool.

If you are prepared to accept they are both as prone to making errors as one another, Ayling’s leadership skills, voice and status must edge him back in front. However, it’s not been much of a turn for Kristensen if he’s bombed out after struggling against one of the most talented attacks in Europe.

Max Wober has to be among the first names on the teamsheet, even if he’s only 75 per cent fit. The more difficult question is whether Gracia takes out Pascal Struijk or Junior Firpo. They both struggled against Jurgen Klopp’s Reds, but if you cast your mind back a few weeks you should remember how solid Firpo was with Wober inside him.

Liam Cooper is the kind of character you want leading Leeds through this low point in the season, but would Gracia sacrifice a right-footed Robin Koch, who has generally done okay this season, for the captain on his weaker side of defence? And what of the two midfielders alongside Harrison in that three?

Gracia’s hands are tied, aren’t they? Sam Greenwood showed on the final day of last season what he can do in the middle when the pressure is on. Perhaps he is the face to freshen things up in the centre.

Adam Forshaw is surely miles away from the condition needed to play more than an hour in a Premier League engine room. Darko Gyabi is the other temptation, but the step up from running under-21 games to this bear pit is monumental.

Luis Sinisterra keeps his place on one of the flanks, while Wilfried Gnonto, if fit, like Wober, has to be one of the first names on the teamsheet. The teenager has proven over several months he is arguably the best attacker in this side and Leeds are desperate for goals right now.

READ NEXT:

Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.

Already a member? Sign in here