Daniel Farke has provided an explanation regarding one of his team selections for Leeds United’s 4-0 win over Oxford United.
Leeds again had an incredibly strong bench but it was those in the starting XI who did the job to make it nine home league wins in a row.
Dan James got the scoring underway early on as he finished off a brilliant sweeping cross from Manor Solomon to continue his brilliant run of form.
Leeds were playing with the wind in their faces first half but once the game got underway after the break, it was all one way traffic.
Jayden Bogle, Brenden Aaronson and Manor Solomon all got on the scoresheet in the space of 15 minutes to finish off Leeds’ most comfortable win of the season.
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Farke on why Pascal Struijk didn’t play for Leeds
Leeds had a couple of injury doubts heading into the game with Pascal Struijk nursing a hamstring issue, and Max Wober struggling with his knee.
Wober was not fit enough to be in the squad but Struijk was surprisingly named on the bench, missing his first game of the season.
Ethan Ampadu was the man who filled in at centre-back, making his first start since picking up a knee injury all the way back in the end of September.
It shows the level of depth Leeds have that Ampadu can come in and still not make the side any weaker when a player like the ‘outstanding‘ Struijk is not available.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Farke revealed how Struijk came through training without any problems but opted against risking him after talks at Thorp Arch.
He said: “He was able to train yesterday but we spoke after, it would have been a risk. I took the decision not to risk him for this game. It was a bit of a risk because Ethan hasn’t played centre-back in ages. He looked sharp in training and we know we have a busy period coming up.”
Oxford perfect game for Ampadu to return
Ampadu has been eased back in with two substitute appearances since returning from injury, but he couldn’t have picked a better game to start in.
Not only did playing at centre-back require less running for him, but it was also a game where Leeds weren’t required to do too much defending.
90 minutes in the legs can only benefit him going into the matches between Christmas and New Year, where he will certainly be needed.
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