Daniel Farke has not been without his injury issues at Leeds United this season.
Farke has had to deal with the absence of several key players during the opening month of the campaign, a lot of which have been long-term.
Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev both picked up long-term knee injuries within the space of a few days, while Dan James and Manor Solomon also simultaneously missed a succession of matches during September and October.
Max Wober is now back in full team training after having surgery on his knee, Largie Ramazani is in the early stages of recovery on an ankle issue and Patrick Bamford is a doubt for the weekend.
Due to the severity of both Ampadu and Gruev’s injuries, Leeds were forced to enter the free agent market, bringing in Josuha Guilavogui until the end of the season.
Farke on Josuha Guilavogui’s behind-the-scenes work at Leeds
Prior to his arrival last week, Guilavogui had been without a club since his release from Mainz in the summer.
Guilavogui’s last 90 minutes came all the way back in March, and so he is obviously someway behind the rest of the squad in terms of fitness.
However, Guilavogui was thrown straight into the squad by Farke at Bristol City last weekend although he didn’t get on, that is a testament to how he has maintained his condition.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Farke says Guilavogui is constantly doing extra work in the gym after training to improve his fitness, meaning is ‘edging closer’ to a potential debut.
“Really well. He has fulfilled, over-filled, expectations. Since he arrived he’s joined us in each and every team training. Sometimes we have tough sessions which are difficult. So professional how he prepares for training, looks after himself in the gym after training.
“He’s edging closer. Wouldn’t be scared if I would need him to play. On the other hand, defensive-wise we’ve looked unbelievably strong in the last games. I’m not forced to rush him into the team but it’s definitely beneficial to have him available.”
Pascal Struijk’s verdict on new Leeds signing Guilavogui
Guilavogui has been a captain almost everywhere he has been throughout his career and so stand-in Leeds skipper Pascal Struijk was asked about how the Frenchman is settling in a recent interview.
Struijk says he noticed very quickly what a ‘top guy’ Leeds have managed to bring in, and has also been impressed by what he’s shown on the pitch in training.
He said: “I mean as a guy, he is a top guy. From the first moment he came in here he had a smile on his face. He trains with a smile, and as a player he is really good. You can see the experience he has, like in the reading of the game.
“He is calm and composed on the ball, so everything you would want really from a number six, or number four. He has played at the highest level and you can only see with the experience he has, sometimes he makes it look easy, because that’s what great players do.”
Receive a digest of our best Leeds content each week direct to your mailbox
