Leeds United journalist Joe Donnohue has been sharing his thoughts on Helder Costa and Raphinha and which of the pair he would start in Leeds’ upcoming Premier League clash against Arsenal.
This comes after Donnohue recently appeared on a Facebook video for Leeds United Live where he previewed the match against the north London club.
On the topic of whether or not Raphinha should play against Mikel Arteta’s side ahead of Costa, Donnohue had this to say on the matter.
He said: “There’s also been some discussion about whether you drop Costa for Raphinha. I think either or – if you start either of them, you’re not losing an awful lot in terms of opportunity costs by starting another and it would be good to see Raphinha to begin with, coming from the start. But equally, I don’t think Costa’s had a bad start to the season.”
So far this season, Costa has started all eight of Leeds’ Premier League games so far this season in which he has managed to score two goals and provide two assists along the way, earning himself a season rating of 6.61/10.
With Raphinha, he has only made three substitute appearances for Leeds so far this season in the Premier League, earning himself a season rating of 6.16/10 (per WhoScored).
Who would you prefer to see start against Arsenal?
Helder Costa
Raphinha
TIF Thoughts on Joe Donnohue’s comments on Costa and Raphinha…
It seems as though Donnohue thinks that both Costa and Raphinha can offer the same sort of qualities for Leeds on the pitch. In that case, it’s now down to Bielsa as to who starts against Arsenal at the weekend.
In our view, it may be better for Leeds to stick with Costa as he has more league experience this season than Raphinha has if Bielsa thinks that might be the appropriate option.
Either way, it’ll be interesting to see how Leeds line up against Arsenal seeing as they would presumably be looking to bounce back with a positive result after a couple of disappointing league defeats.