Leeds United slumped to their first loss in the league this season.
Marcelo Bielsa’s men were beaten at home by struggling Birmingham City. Former Leeds manager Garry Monk returned to Elland Road and grabbed three points.
But Leeds should not be too disheartened by this. There are merely some lessons to be learned.
One of them is that Ezgjan Alioski, despite his goal, needs to step up. Here is why.
Alioski goal
Alioski provided a nice finish to get Leeds back in the game against Birmingham. But his all-round performance was quite poor.
The 26-year-old now has three goals and two assists in nine league matches. However, despite his contributions going forward, he is still frustrating Leeds fans.
Alioski is often caught offside and he is often wasteful in possession. He needs to start contributing more to the team performance.
Inconsistency
Leeds fans will be most concerned about Alioski’s inconsistency. On his day, the Macedonia international can be a real handful.
He is quick, skilful and he does have an eye for goal. Cutting in from the right and striking the ball with his left, it is clear that he has a lot of talent.
But he doesn’t always play to the best of his ability. Leeds fans will want to see him providing the goods on a more regular basis.
Drop to the bench?
It might be time for Bielsa to drop Alioski to the bench.
Samu Saiz is a regular in the side and Jack Harrison is now establishing himself as a top player at this level.
When Pablo Hernandez returns, it looks like it could be Alioski who misses out. That is unless he starts showing what he can do on a more regular basis.