Daniel Farke will be under pressure to make a number of changes to his Leeds United side after the 3-1 defeat to Southampton on Saturday, and the quick turn around – and he should finally start Ilia Gruev.
Farke kept faith with the 11 that cruised past Watford a week prior to Saturday’s trip to Southampton. A show of faith to the players that secured that win for us, telling players – play well, you keep your place.
But in the same breath, Farke should also make changes after the 11 he started simply did not work. So, it might be the likes of Jamie Shackleton, Glen Kamara, Dan James and others drop out on Wednesday.
Gruev, 24, has been made to wait patiently since his arrival at Elland Road. A £4m signing from top-tier Bundesliga side Werder Bremen, he will not have joined to simply come in and warm the Leeds bench.
But that is what he has done so far. An unused sub on Saturday, he has only managed late sub outings against Millwall and Watford. At Southampton, the Leeds midfield was overrun by Russell Martin’s men.
So perhaps, it might be time to take Ethan Ampadu out of the firing line. The Welshman has played every minute so far and given the quick turn around after a lethargic display, he might deserve a rest.
Surely, this is the best time – in front of a home crowd against a struggling QPR side – to bring Gruev into the starting line-up as Leeds get back to winning ways. He will be frustrated, certainly, if he does not.
