Daniel Farke has confirmed that Leeds United will play without Pascal Struijk and Sam Byram in Friday’s big game against Leicester City.
Jaidon Anthony has returned to training after personal reasons and is available, while Patrick Bamford has also returned to training, although there is still a big question mark over whether he will play in the game.
Karl Darlow has also returned to training but is not yet available, while Byram and Struijk are still unavailable due to injuries, according to the boss.
“Jaidon Anthony is back in training and is also available, which is good news,” he said. “Karl is also back for the main parts of the team’s training sessions. We are just waiting for him to reach his match sharpness.
“As for Sam, I expect him to return to training next week, he will definitely miss this match. For Patrick the situation is more positive. We have one more training session and it may happen that he will come back, and then he has a small chance to be in the team. But he will definitely be back next week.
“Struijk has been allowed to extend his training loan, and if everything goes in a great way, then he will return to the team’s training. I expect him to return after the international break.”
Leeds United now have a realistic chance of automatic promotion:
Leeds United are aware that, because of the tremendous form they are in, they have a fantastic chance of securing promotion with a win over Leicester.
The Whites have won every game in 2024 and are unbeaten at Elland Road all season. However, with Southampton’s midweek defeat to Hull, they have a better chance of progressing in the race for automatic promotion.
It is also a chance to reduce the gap at the top of the table, and having already beaten Leicester once this season at the King Power Stadium, there should be a lot of confidence in the team.
A win increases the gap to six points and puts a small gap between them and the chasers, albeit perhaps only by 24 hours, but psychologically it is huge.
The injury news is mostly positive, with some important attacking players returning to the game, so the fans have every right to expect a good performance and result on Friday night.