Leeds United U21s return to action this evening as they take on West Bromwich Albion at York’s LNER Community Stadium. Michael Skubala’s Whites will be looking to bounce back to winning ways after suffering their first league defeat of the season last time out at Nottingham Forest.
The Whites sat six points clear going into that game with Forest, but Southampton’s wins over Derby County and Newcastle United mean United are now second in the Premier League 2 Division 2 table. A result tonight will see them reclaim top spot, though, and they’ll fancy their chances against the Baggies, who currently sit in fifth.
With Jesse Marsch expected to make a few first-team changes for the FA Cup replay against Cardiff City, it’s hard to know who will be available for the U21s this evening, but we’re still expecting a strong line-up. Kristoffer Klaesson seems to be comfortably behind Joel Robles and Illan Meslier in the pecking order at present and therefore he could pick up some minutes this evening in York.
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Cody Drameh wasn’t involved on Friday night at Aston Villa at all and it seems likely that he could get some minutes, even if the plan is for him to get some senior game time against the Bluebirds on Wednesday. With Leo Hjelde joining Rotherham United on loan, there will be changes to the U21s back line, with James Debayo potentially stepping in to play alongside Jeremiah Mullen, while Kris Moore moves out to the left.
Darko Gyabi is another who could return to the U21s line-up. The midfielder got 59 minutes at the Cardiff City Stadium and he might be in line for another outing on Wednesday, but he has the opportunity to keep himself sharp with the youth side.
The same can be said for Sonny Perkins and Mateo Joseph, who both have a foot firmly in the first-team camp now. Expect their game time to managed, if involved, as it was against Forest given that game was played just two days before the Cardiff cup tie. Tonight could provide Sean McGurk with the platform to return to the starting line-up, too.
Max McFadden was in the side at Forest, but he played 71 minutes for the U18s against Manchester City on Saturday and probably won’t be involved, meaning there could be a space to fill on the left flank and McGurk may well be the obvious choice.
Predicted Leeds United U21s side: Kristoffer Klaesson; Cody Drameh, Jeremiah Mullen, James Debayo, Kris Moore; Darko Gyabi, Joe Snowdon; Sonny Perkins, Charlie Allen, Sean McGurk; Mateo Joseph
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