Leeds United star Junior Firpo ‘not fit to wear the shirt’ – pundit
Junior Firpo lacks defensive awareness and is not an upgrade on his Leeds United left-back predecessor Ezgjan Alioski.
That is according to ex-Whites goalkeeper Paddy Kenny, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the £13million signing from Barcelona last summer.
Firpo struggled to deal with Aston Villa in Thursday night’s 3-0 defeat before breaking down with an injury as a sixth consecutive Leeds defeat leaves them in a real battle to avoid relegation.
Leeds remain only two points above the bottom three, having played two games more than 18th-placed Burnley.
United were swept apart by Villa on Thursday as Jesse Marsch’s second match at the helm, and his first at Elland Road, proved to be a miserable one.
Firpo, who operated at right-back, had a torrid evening before leaving the field on a stretcher in stoppage time while being administered oxygen.
“I’ve not been impressed by Firpo,” Kenny told Football Insider. “He doesn’t have much defensive awareness and his positioning is poor.
“I watch him so often and he’s flat-footed or fast asleep. Leeds let Alioski go and I think that was a mistake.
“Firpo is not an upgrade on Alioski. Is he good enough for Leeds and to wear that shirt? No, I don’t think he is.”
Firpo has struggled to make an impact in his first season in the Premier League since joining last summer.
He has been the first choice left-back for most of the campaign, making 15 league starts among 23 appearances in all competitions.
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