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Noel Whelan critical of Leeds winger Helder Costa after Liverpool draw
Noel Whelan that he is growing tired of Helder Costa not being braver, insisting that he would prefer to see Ian Poveda ahead of him following Leeds United’s draw with Liverpool on Monday.
The Whites were able to earn a point against the Premier League champions at Elland Road. Diego Llorente scored late on to cancel out Sadio Mane’s first-half opener.
The equaliser came after a much improved second-half display from Marcelo Bielsa’s side. And one of those who really stood out was Poveda, with the youngster replacing Costa with just over 20 minutes remaining.
Poveda was excellent in his first appearance since January. He looked exciting. And he seemed to cause a lot of problems for the Liverpool defence.
It came after an underwhelming performance from Costa. And Whelan suggested that Bielsa should consider starting Poveda ahead of Costa in the future.
“He goes ahead of Costa for me after tonight,” . “He really does, because I’m getting tired of seeing Costa play backwards and sidewards and not have the guts and bravery to try and take on people – whether you lose the ball or not.
“Like Poveda, he keeps going, he keeps giving it a go. And he sets up a great chance for Roberts this evening. In that short space of time, he did more in that final third than Costa did until he went off.”
TBR View: Costa capable of so much better
In fairness to Costa – who earns £32,500-a-week, – he produced one of his better displays this season in the stunning win at Manchester City in Leeds’s previous game.
And there were some impressive moments on Monday. Only Diego Llorente won more tackles than the 27-year-old (via ).
But as Leeds chased an equaliser, there is no question that Poveda’s introduction pushed the Whites on.
And if Raphinha is not ready to return for the weekend, Poveda has arguably staked a genuine claim to feature against Manchester United.