If he hadn’t already sussed out the mentality of his squad players at Leeds United, Sam Allardyce will see undisputedly what kind of character they have on Sunday. If the magnitude of the relegation stakes were not enough to test their mettle, their head coach has now openly questioned whether they are up to this.
If Allardyce had any plans to modify the starting XI he used at London Stadium for Tottenham Hotspur’s visit, he had better hope his replacements have thick skins. On two occasions in Sunday’s post-match press conference, Allardyce criticised the lack of impact from the quintet he introduced from the bench.
The head coach’s comments about the lack of an alternative centre forward were damning of a sixth member too, in Georginio Rutter. Will they step up with gritted teeth to prove the 68-year-old wrong or fold in a sulk about it?
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“The impact of the subs wasn't there as I expected,” said Allardyce. “I expected a better impact from the subs, so that gives me an even bigger look at the situation and the squad as a whole, seeing who can make a difference and, unfortunately, I don't think any of the subs made a difference today when we needed them.”
Allardyce has risked burning the only alternatives he has to Sunday’s starters or used one of the oldest tricks in the book to summon an edge, some fight in them. Leeds need a miracle on Sunday and that’s only going to come to pass if they take care of their own business.
Junior Firpo will be available for selection again, while Liam Cooper should be ready to start after a week of full training following Sunday’s exclusion. Rutter has virtually been discarded by Allardyce, leaving the five names he introduced at West Ham United.
Brenden Aaronson, Marc Roca, Wilfried Gnonto, Sam Greenwood and Crysencio Summerville will be leaned on in some way if neither Patrick Bamford nor Rodrigo recover in time. Looking ahead to this week’s biggest concerns, Allardyce feared for the quality he would be left with come Sunday and the injuries to his two senior forwards,
“The quality of the team we're going to play and what are the injuries would be my main concern having watched the substitutes we made today,” he said. “When you make substitutions you want to see an impact in a positive manner.
“Whether it's the pressure, or whether it's a lack of confidence, I didn't see that, sadly. I saw lots of good possession and lots of opportunities, but a bigger failure, probably, [in] the second half was the final ball and the final quality of the ball.
“That was a real concern to me because we always feel today, as a manager, your subs are your impact on your team to get better and that was obviously something that didn't actually work today, sadly.”
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