Samuel Saiz and Ronaldo Vieira are the only two Leeds United players safe from the axe for the team’s Championship clash against Middlesbrough in two weeks, according to the Yorkshire Evening Post.
The newspaper claim the Spanish playmaker and the central midfielder were the two “bright lights” as Leeds suffered their seventh defeat in eight matches in all competitions on Saturday.
The 2-1 defeat at Brentford was United’s sixth league loss in seven games and further increased the pressure on manager Thomas Christiansen even though the team are relatively comfortably placed at 10th in the table.
The Yorkshire Evening Post report that “the starting merits of just about every Whites player could be discussed in depth at present and really only Saiz stood out with a strong display at Brentford though Vieira rose to the challenge after the interval.
The newspaper added that “just about every position looks up for grabs at present, bar Saiz and possibly Vieira, too”.
United return to action after the international break at home to former boss Garry Monk’s Middlesbrough, who are fifth in the Championship with 26 points.
OPINION
Rightly, Christiansen has built his attack around the vision and technical excellence of Saiz, the one summer signing who has consistently delivered the goods. He is the heartbeat of this team and the player who any revival must be built around. Vieira has returned to the starting XI in recent matches after being unable to find a way past the Eunan O’Kane-Kalvin Phillips partnership in the opening months of the campaign. The academy product provides an important physical presence and was one of the few Leeds players to stand up to be counted in the second period against Brentford.