Medical expert names new Liam Cooper comeback date after ‘red herring’ at Leeds United
Leeds United skipper Liam Cooper will be available for selection before the mid-March international break.
That is the view of injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Cooper, 30, is now back in training at Thorp Arch after being sidelined since early December with a hamstring injury.
The defender has turned out for the last time under Marcelo Bielsa after the Argentine was replaced in the dugout by Jesse Marsch earlier this week.
Bielsa told the Yorkshire Evening Post last Friday (25 February) it “doesn’t seem like it’s going to be the case” that Cooper will be back in early March.
Dinnery claims that Cooper’s return to training may have been a “red herring” and he is still a couple of weeks away from being match-ready.
“We always thought it was going to be around three months but I think that mid-March is realistic now,” he told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“Just because you’re back training, that doesn’t mean you’re ready to be part of the first team. It can actually be a bit of a red herring.
“There are lots of exercises to complete and hoops you need to jump through before you get to that stage.
“Leeds need Cooper to be ready when he does come back. If it adds a few weeks on the timeline for the sake of not rushing him, it’ll be worth it.
“There is that international break coming up, which can affect the situation. I would have thought he would be back in the matchday squad before then.
“Decisions will be player-led. He is a professional and he will want to go out and arrest the slide that Leeds are on.”
Cooper has supplied one assist in 16 appearances this term.
Marsch will take charge of his first Leeds game against Leicester City tomorrow (5 March).
In other news, Leeds United employee salutes “massive talent” after Jesse Marsch reveal.