Noel Whelan believes that Leeds United will make three changes to their defence for the Championship clash at home to Ipswich on Saturday.
The Whites recorded an impressive win over Premier League side Burnley in mid-week on penalties in the fourth round of the League Cup.
Thomas Christiansen fielded a much-changed side for the cup consisting of Luke Ayling, Conor Shaughnessy, Gaetano Berardi and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson as the defence.
However, Whelan believes that Ayling will be the only survivor in the back-line as the rest drop out for the league encounter.
Liam Cooper, Pontus Jansson and Vurnon Anita are the senior players pushing to get back into the starting XI for the league and Whelan expects they will be reinstated.
“I actually can’t see too many changes, even though everybody was exceptional the other night,” Whelan told BBC Radio Leeds. “I think he’ll go back to Cooper and Jansson.
“Ayling will go back into right-back. Left-back, I can only see Anita playing there as well. I think it’ll be your normal back four tomorrow.”
First-team trio Shaughnessy, Berardi and Borthwick-Jackson are all vying for regular spots in the team, but face serious competition in the squad.
Christiansen has settled on a preferred defence during the early part of the season, with the Jansson-Cooper centre-back combination working perfectly alongside full-backs Ayling and Anita.
However, fan favourite Berardi is applying pressure in the full-back areas for a starting role and did himself no harm against Burnley.
Meanwhile, young pair Shaughnessy and Borthwick-Jackson have both shown their ability at senior level and provide strong cover.
OPINION
Leeds’ squad depth is something that could play a major role in their promotion bid this season and they have a serious amount of quality in defence. It is a big sign that combative defender Berardi currently can’t force his way into the side despite being a top player in the Championship. Christiansen should definitely make big changes to his defence and continue with the players against Ipswich that have helped them reach top of the Championship. However, the senior options will know they can’t afford to let their standards slip as a number of players put forward a strong case for themselves in the cup.