There are priorities and there are priorities
Leeds United’s trip to Molineux felt like the former. For all of the ambitions about going on a cup run, 10 changes is never going to give a head coach a leg to stand on if they then crash out of the competition.
Ahead of the first EFL Cup match this season, chief executive Angus Kinnear said: “Victor [Orta] and I have particularly poor track records in the cups having witnessed numerous early exits including humiliations at Crawley and Newport. We, therefore, share a personal desire to give supporters a cup run we can be proud of.”
Cup runs are not built on putting together 11 players who have never been in the same line-up together and four debutants. The team itself actually played beyond expectations, particularly the younger faces, and there is no doubting their application on the night.
READ MORE: Rene Maric hits back at critics of Leeds United's heavily-changed team selection vs Wolves
However, it’s hard for Jesse Marsch or Rene Maric, who stood in for the press conference last night, to then pretend a cup run was important to the club this season. Had that been a league match last night, there would not have been 10 changes, regardless of the prior fortnight’s intensity.
You could have excused three, four or five changes, but when you’re gutting the side which has carried so much momentum from the last two wins, it’s hard to expect rhythm and synchronicity across the pitch. Maric was right in setting out the staff’s trust in the group selected and the importance of them taking steps like Wednesday’s, but it’s clear they’re being taken in the Carabao Cup because it’s just not a priority for the club.
Youngsters impress
Leo Hjelde and Joe Gelhardt are hardly seasoned pros, but the great intrigue around last night was focused on the three outfield debutants. Darko Gyabi, Sonny Perkins and Mateo Joseph have all shone emphatically for the under-21s this season.
After months of comments about their high training level and a right to more first-team opportunities, Marsch finally found that opening for all three to make their Whites bows. Gyabi sat alongside Mateusz Klich and caught the eye most with his strong tackling across the field.
Perkins and Joseph would show the chemistry they have spent developing across the last three months with the under-21s. Perkins began the under-21 season with seven goals in six matches, while Joseph had turned in 11 goals from seven games for Michael Skubala’s side.
That kind of cutting edge may not have been borne out in goals at Molineux, but their interplay, passing and confidence was hugely impressive. On another night, Joseph could have scored from the openings he had.
Writing may be on the wall for Harrison
When you get to within one change of an entire switch-up for United, it’s hard to ignore the significance of the one player kept in while his Premier League team-mates are getting their feet up. Even more so when that player sees out a full 90 minutes too.
One of the main talking points after the Bournemouth win was Jack Harrison’s place in the XI and the coming challenge of Wilfried Gnonto. Gnonto’s impact from the bench in the last two made Wednesday look like a formality for his full debut.
For Marsch to make the Italy international wait a little longer while persevering with the one player hugely out of form currently, it’s hard to ignore the message that sends about this weekend’s starting line-up. Time will tell whether Marsch takes the plunge with Summerville and Gnonto each starting in such a big game, but there was little in Wolverhampton from Harrison to suggest he had played his way back into form.
Gelhardt cannot shake memories of Brentford trip
Gelhardt was well overdue for a start in the Leeds team. The striker’s only outing beyond 16 minutes since September 3’s visit to Brentford was with the under-21s in Premier League 2.
Marsch has understandably been cycling between Rodrigo and Patrick Bamford in the first team, which has left Gelhardt, a hero so often last season, waiting in the wings for late cameos here and there. A long-awaited return to the fold on Wednesday would serve as a reminder of the problems he had at Brentford in September.
On that afternoon, Gelhardt would find himself isolated in attack and smothered by the physical treatment of Pontus Jansson and Ben Mee. Any service above shoulder height was meat and drink for the centre-backs, while anything into his feet left him struggling to find options to build attacks.
Nathan Collins and Max Kilman would take similar pleasure in anything airborne bound for Gelhardt last night, while an understandably rusty first touch made it hard for the striker to get anything going from the turf either. The knock which forced Gelhardt off only added insult to injury on a frustrating night for him, which also included more than one offside call.
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