Leeds United midfielder Jamie Shackleton will miss Saturday’s meeting with Arsenal with an Achilles injury, Phil Hay reports.
The Lowdown: Absentees mounting up
Leeds were already without a number of first-team players against Manchester City on Tuesday. Patrick Bamford, Kalvin Phillips, Liam Cooper, Rodrigo, Robin Koch and Pascal Struijk were all missing from the matchday squad, with the Whites falling to a heavy 7-0 defeat.
Junior Firpo picked up a fifth booking of the season against Pep Guardiola’s side so will be unavailable on Saturday. Meanwhile, Shackleton made his 11th Premier League appearance in the week but hobbled off shortly before the interval, and it seems as if he’ll now join Leeds’ lengthy injury list.
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The Latest: Shackleton out
Hay covered Marcelo Bielsa’s pre-Arsenal press conference and shared multiple updates on Twitter.
One of the first topics was on injuries, with the Leeds boss confirming Shackleton, who he formerly described as ‘important’, is out with an Achilles issue, while Dan James won’t make it due to an abductor muscle problem.
Defender Koch will be available against Mikel Arteta’s side, though, a rare positive injury update from Thorp Arch.
The Verdict: What now?
Shackleton, primarily a midfielder, has been playing on the right-hand side this season for the Whites, so Bielsa will need to tinker once again as he prepares to host the Gunners.
With Koch back, though, Luke Ayling could return to his natural right-back role, leaving Koch to partner Diego Llorente. Another option would be youngster Cody Drameh, who actually earned a first Leeds start against Saturday’s opponents in the Carabao Cup.
It will be interesting to see what Bielsa decides to go with, but at least he does have multiple options with Koch now back.
In other news: ‘They do like him’ – journalist lifts lid on Leeds move for ‘class’ midfielder after City defeat.
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