Leeds United return to Premier League action later this evening and Marcelo Bielsa will be hoping for a change in fortunes on the pitch, having picked up just two wins from their opening 12 matches.
The Yorkshiremen head to the south coast for the late kick-off against Brighton and Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium off the back of a 2-1 defeat in north London last time out.
Bielsa’s men dominated spells of the first half against Tottenham Hotspur, even going into the break with a one-goal lead, but were undone in the second half.
The Argentine was clearly unimpressed by the performance from Mateusz Klich, who earned a recall to the engine room, as he was the first player hooked and that was just 14 minutes after half-time, right after Spurs’ equaliser.
‘Another difficult afternoon for Klich to shine. Looked despondent as he came off, but his pressing was non-existent in the second half. Summed up why he had not been in the team in recent weeks,’ wrote LeedsLive reporter Beren Cross in his post-match ratings column.
Indeed, the Poland international has been way off his usual standard for the bulk of the 2021/22 campaign.
His last three starts in the Premier League have drawn shocking WhoScored ratings of 6.34 against Southampton and Wolverhampton Wanderers, and his second-lowest of the season, a 6.17 against Spurs.
As per SofaScore, Klich lost every single one of his duels last Sunday, failed to record a successful dribble and was dribbled past twice by the opposition’s midfield. Passenger-like.
Only four players to have started eight or more games have managed a worse average rating for the entire season, and unsurprisingly they are mainly attack-minded players.
Valued at £8.5m and earning around £34k-per-week at Elland Road, Klich has surely lost his place in the starting XI heading into this weekend’s encounter. At the time of writing, Brighton are sat inside the top ten, so they will be a tough test and the struggling Whites can no longer afford to carry underperforming players like the Polish midfielder.
Bielsa must be ruthless and axe his long-serving favourite from his starting XI tonight.
AND in other news, Beren Cross drops Leeds United managerial update…