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4 key passes, 4 tackles: Junior Firpo largely excellent in Leeds defeat
Junior Firpo handed Leeds United a big boost ahead of this weekend with Marcelo Bielsa confirming that he was back available after missing three games due to injury.
Firpo has had a really mixed time since moving to Elland Road. But for the large part, he had been improving a lot as each performance went by. And it was a blow to not have him for several games. He has previously been labelled ‘world-class‘ by Angus Kinnear.
He was named on the bench against Manchester United on Sunday. But by half-time, he had been brought on after Robin Koch suffered a nasty injury.
Admittedly, it was not a flawless display from Firpo. He let Jason Sancho run off him way too easily for the visitors’ second. And he lost possession for their third.
However, overall, Firpo was absolutely outstanding in another contender for his best performance yet for Leeds.
Despite coming on at the half-hour mark, Firpo made the second-highest number of tackles, . Adam Forshaw topped the charts.
Meanwhile, he made more key passes than any other player on either side. Firpo managed four – double the number of the likes of Rodrigo and Mateusz Klich.
Some of Firpo’s work down the left along with Dan James was outstanding. And actually, he provided the assist for Rodrigo’s strike at the start of the second-half.
Firpo one of Leeds’ shining lights on another tough day for Marcelo Bielsa
Clearly, it was another frustrating day for Leeds. They were calamitous at the back at times. And the result was a sickener given the fightback at the start of the second-half.
No Leeds player was without fault. Klich was absolutely brilliant in the middle of the park. But he had several opportunities and yet, rarely looked like scoring.
Firpo can be questioned for a couple of the goals. But considering that he has missed a few weeks, would not have expected to play so much of Sunday’s game, and the conditions it was played in, Firpo deserves a lot of credit.
And his return could prove to be particularly valuable to Leeds in the weeks to come.