Leeds: Phil Hay claims Stuart Dallas on schedule to return from injury

Phil Hay has admitted that Stuart Dallas is still hopeful of playing a part in Leeds United’s season.

The Lowdown: Leeds need everyone fit to stay up

It’s certainly going to be a relegation battle that goes right down until the final day with the bottom nine clubs being separated by just six points as the games begin to dwindle down.

Leeds currently sit outside of the relegation zone despite losing on the weekend, mainly down to the fact some late goals for the likes of Nottingham Forest and Arsenal boosted their chances of survival.

Someone who they’ve clearly missed this season is the versatile Stuart Dallas who picked up a freak and very serious injury last campaign that’s seen him nowhere even near the first-team picture for almost a year now.

The Latest: Dallas could have a say in this season

Prior to his injury Dallas had missed just one game in three seasons for Leeds and despite his serious setback, Hay has admitted on The Phil Hay Show the Northern Ireland international is on schedule to make a timely return this campaign.

He said: (9:10) “I think if he got games in before the season finished then that would be pretty satisfying and that would be him on target, considering how bad the injury was.

“Gracia is giving nothing very little away about injuries at the moment and I haven’t had an update recently on Dallas [but] he appears to be on schedule and he appears to be doing well.

“You’ll remember Marsch saying he had a little cleanup operation not so long ago but I think that was standard and I think that was part of the process but it was never really the expectation that Dallas was going to play a huge part this year.”

The Verdict: Unexpected boost for Gracia

This is more positive news for Leeds, with Phil Hay saying Rodrigo is hopeful of playing against Brighton.

When Gracia walked into Leeds he may have totally discounted long-term absentee Dallas as even a possibility to play this season but the fact he’s remained on schedule for such a long time now is a statement of his character and what leads means to him, which must be obvious given Marsch labelled him as ‘fantastic‘ despite him never training/working under the American during his tenure.

Getting someone such as Dallas back in the first team picture, not necessarily starting, but just to have in and around the dressing room could be a huge boost mentally for Leeds in their fight against the drop.

This is because the versatile player who can play midfield or defence was part of the club’s scrap last term and has been around the game for a long time now, so his experienced head could be invaluable if he can just play a few games.

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Aaron Hindhaugh

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