Patrick Bamford: Medical expert issues ‘huge’ verdict after Leeds United footage emerges today
Patrick Bamford’s return for Leeds United will be “huge” regardless of whether he is fully fit or not.
That is the view of injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Bamford, whose season has been blighted by various injuries, has played just 459 minutes across six league appearances this term.
The 28-year-old centre-forward is currently sidelined with a foot injury.
BBC Radio Leeds journalist Adam Pope posted a video clip on Twitter today (3 March) of Bamford back in training for the first time since the setback.
And Dinnery insists that the importance of his return to action cannot be understated as Leeds battle to beat the drop.
“The hope is he’ll play some part in the run-in,” he told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“There’s no getting away from the fact they have missed a central striker, someone to put the ball in the back of the net.
“His absence has been felt keenly. Even in that brief cameo against Brentford a while ago, he managed to get on the scoresheet.
“That just shows that strikers know how to be in the right place at the right time. Getting that back, this will be huge for Leeds.
“Is he going to be fully fit and firing on all cylinders for the run-in? Absolutely not, given the fact that he has missed most of the season through injury.
“But will he be able to contribute and score goals? Yes, absolutely.”
Bamford has scored two goals and supplied three assists in his only eight outings this term.
His next game back will come under new manager Jesse Marsch, who was hired to replace Marcelo Bielsa on Monday (28 February)
In other news, pundit suggests “hidden” clause in Marsch contract that “Leeds United don’t want to advertise”.