Marcelo Bielsa has claimed Leeds United duo Kemar Roofe and Adam Forshaw are making good progress in their comeback bids.
Speaking at his media conference on Monday, as cited by the Leeds live press conference blog (12.52pm), the United manager gave an update on the pair, who are sidelined with knee injuries.
“They are improving every day,” Bielsa said. “And they are making the positive steps we thought they were going to make and we are following their improvement.”
OPINION
News that key duo Roofe and Forshaw are making sound progress is very significant in the context of Leeds’ automatic promotion challenge. The team have coped well without them in recent times, winning three of the last four since Roofe sustained a knee injury in the win against Swansea City. Forshaw has been absent for six games in total after an extended spell in the starting XI before that for the Championship’s second-placed side. Nevertheless, both were nailed-on starters before their injuries and their returns would increase the options available to Bielsa. Patrick Bamford’s injury against Bristol City on Saturday, which has thankfully not proved to be enough to stop him starting against Reading on Tuesday night, demonstrated the precariousness of Leeds’ striker situation. The team is not reliant upon one goalscorer, but an enduring theme of the season is the side have struggled to capitalise on the fluency of their playing style and dominance of games through a sheer weight of goals.