Patrick Bamford could miss out on the starting XI to make room for this dynamo.
Leeds United travel to Wales to take on Swansea City in the Championship tonight, and they could end the evening in the automatic promotion places.
The Whites are one point behind Southampton in second and will move ahead of Russell Martin’s side if the Saints fail to beat Bristol City away from home in their 8 pm kick-off and they beat the Swans.
Daniel Farke’s men are aiming for promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, having been relegated to the second tier at the end of last season, and are in the running to secure a top two finish alongside the likes of Southampton, Ipswich, and Leicester.
The Yorkshire-based outfit head into this clash with Swansea off the back of a 3-0 win over bottom-of-the-league Rotherham, and the German head coach could look to make some changes to his starting XI to deal with the relentless fixture list.
One alteration the former Norwich City tactician should make is to bring Joel Piroe back into the side to provide him with an opportunity to impress against his former club as the starting number nine.
This would involve dropping Patrick Bamford from the team to reunite the front two that started the season with the Dutch ace up alongside Georginio Rutter.
Patrick Bamford’s performance against Rotherham
It may seem harsh on paper to ditch the English centre-forward from the starting line-up after he scored the opening goal against the Millers but it was far from an impressive performance by the attacker.
The 30-year-old marksman’s goal came in controversial circumstances as Junior Firpo’s deflected cross appeared to be diverted into the back of the net by the outstretched arm of Bamford, which was missed by the officials who awarded the goal.
Had the referee spotted the handball and disallowed the goal, or if it had happened in the Premier League with VAR in use, then the ex-Chelsea prospect’s display may have been viewed through a different lens.
Patrick Bamford
Vs Rotherham
Minutes
75
Pass accuracy
63%
Key passes
Zero
Shots
Five
Duels contested
Six
Duels won
One
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, the rest of his performance left a lot to be desired as he struggled in and out of possession throughout the game.
Rotherham’s defenders found it far too easy to get the better of Bamford, who lost three of his four battles on the ground and both of his aerial contests.
The experienced striker’s lack of creativity, along with his lacklustre passing, may also have been a bigger issue if he had not been awarded the goal for the opener, especially when you consider that the Leeds forward missed his other four shot attempts.
Bamford’s struggles against the Miller, coupled with three Championship games in a week, could see him ditched, or rested, for Farke to unleash Piroe from the start.
Joel Piroe’s goalscoring potential
The Dutch marksman has only scored one goal in his last seven league appearances for the Whites but his overall record in the division suggests that his current form is nothing more than a blip.
He found the back of the net nine times in his first 23 Championship matches this season – with all nine of those coming in 20 outings for Leeds after his transfer from Swansea in August.
The Whites snapped him up from the Welsh side after Piroe had proven himself as a prolific scorer at that level across two seasons with the Swans.
Piroe moved to Wales in the summer of 2021 and racked up an eye-catching 22 goals and six assists in 40 starts, from an Expected Goals of just 16.67.
The left-footed dynamo followed that up with a return of 19 goals and two assists in 43 Championship matches, from an xG of 13.20 throughout the 2022/23 campaign.
Piroe, who was lauded as “clinical” by journalist Josh Bunting, then made the switch to Leeds and has produced ten goals from an xG of 7.73.
In total, the 24-year-old ace has plundered an impressive 51 goals from just 37.6 xG since the start of the 2021/22 Championship campaign, which speaks to his superb finishing and scoring ability at that level.
He is a proven goalscorer in the second tier and his recent struggles in front of goal should not put Farke off from starting him, particularly against his former club where the striker may have added motivation to make an impact.
Georginio Rutter’s creative brilliance
The Dutch centre-forward should also have plenty of opportunities to find the back of the net with Rutter in his new-look number ten role, rather than being the starting number nine.
Leeds’ French wizard has the creative quality to split open the Swansea defence at will to create high-quality chances for Piroe in front of goal.
23/24 Championship (per 90)
Percentile rank
Shot-creating actions (4.43)
Top 2%
Assists (0.36)
Top 4%
Expected Assisted Goals (0.35)
Top 2%
Progressive passes (4.15)
Top 5%
Successful take-ons (3.04)
Top 1%
Rutter vs forwards (via FBref)
As you can see in the table above, the former Hoffenheim prospect has been one of the best forwards in the Championship at creating chances and progressing the play through passes and take-ons for his team.
Rutter can pass and dribble through teams to provide assists for his teammates, which has led to 19 ‘big chances’ created and ten assists in 30 league outings in total.
These statistics show that the 21-year-old has the quality to lay chances on a plate for Piroe from the number ten position, which could allow the 6 foot 1 striker to flourish up front.
Whereas, earlier this season, Farke’s side lined up with the former Swansea star in the hole and Rutter as the main centre-forward, albeit they were both able to switch at times depending on the state of the play.
Overall, the pair have the potential to be a lethal combination at the top end of the pitch for Leeds with their respective creativity and finishing qualities in the final third, which is why the German boss should drop Bamford to unleash them together against the Swans in Wales this evening.
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