Leeds United duo Gaetano Berardi and Izzy Brown will step up their comebacks by playing for the Under-23s against Southampton tonight (Monday), according to a Yorkshire Evening Post journalist.
Joe Urquhart reported on his personal Twitter account that the defender and attacking midfielder are the most advanced of the five senior United players currently sidelined.
He added that Stuart Dallas and Barry Douglas are set to play “next week, all being well” as they closed in on returns, but Patrick Bamford could need longer before he can play again.
https://twitter.com/JoeUrquhartYEP/status/1087338163499077636
OPINION
All of the injured quintet will be major assets to Marcelo Bielsa when they return to full fitness, and are likely to be installed in the first-team squad that has been decimated for virtually the entire campaign. Douglas should need the least fine-tuning as he has played most of the matches this season before succumbing to his second hamstring injury of 2018-19. Of the others, their lengthy absences will surely mean at least a couple of reserve-team run-outs. Brown played for the first time in a month last week, but he hasn’t played competitive football in a year, and Bielsa has said he will need six matches before he is fully up to speed. Certainly, the returns of Brown and Bamford will add much-needed attacking flair to a side that has sometimes looked short of invention. Dallas is a jack of all trades, while Douglas is the first choice left-back and Berardi a redoubtable defender who can slot in anywhere across the back line.