Former Whites player Andy Couzens has revealed his relief at Marcelo Bielsa resting some key players for Leeds’ FA Cup clash on Sunday.
Bielsa’s side take on Queen’s Park Rangers at Loftus Road in third round of the competition, and the manager surprisingly revealed his exact starting XI for the encounter 48 hours before the match actually takes place.
The likes of Jack Harrison are set to start in the number nine role, with Jamie Shackleton also set to make the starting line-up on Sunday.
Couzens admitted that he was pleased that Bielsa is set to rest players like Kemar Roofe for this Cup game, as the Championship should be their number one priority.
He said on his personal Twitter account: “FA cup day glad we are resting a few players tomorrow the league has to come first for us this year!!! Still a strong team and game time that some are needing still fancy us to get a result though. Love the FA cup biggest cup competition in the world.”
FA cup day glad we are resting a few players tomorrow the league has to come first for us this year!!! Still a strong team and game time that some are needing still fancy us to get a result though. Love the FA cup biggest cup competition in the world
— andy couzens (@andycuz23) January 5, 2019
OPINION
Couzens is right – Bielsa is spot on to rest a few key players for this match, as the Championship should be their main priority right now. That, of course, does not rule out a decent run in the competition – it just means that promotion should be the most important aim for the club at the moment. Players like Kemar Roofe need a rest, as does Ezgjan Alioski, so Bielsa is wise to rest them both. Bielsa revealed that Harrison is set to start in the number nine role, and after a number of poor performances this season, it will be interesting to see him play in a position that is not his most natural one. Leeds are more than capable of getting a good result with a team that looks likely to be weakened, just as Couzens has pointed out. Giving other players the opportunity to shine will allow Bielsa to gauge just how much depth the Whites have – so here is hoping that they perform well on Sunday.