22-year-old must be axed: Three things we learned about Leeds in win against Blackburn
By Harvey Byrne
Football Insider analyses three talking points from Leeds’ 2-1 win against Blackburn in the Championship on Wednesday.
Sacko must be axed
The Leeds wing men would have been looking to impress Garry Monk following the club’s deadline-day activity. However, Hadi Sacko was less than impressive on Wednesday evening before being brought off at half time for Pablo Hernandez. The 22-year-old has the required pace and trickery to cause a number of problems to Championship defences, but he often lacks that killer final ball. Monk brought in Alfonso Pedraza and Modou Barrow on Tuesday evening, who join with good pedigree from La Liga and the Premier League respectively. It is expected that they will have the ability to play dangerous balls to go alongside their devastating pace and one of them must be named in the team ahead of Sacko in Sunday’s important clash against Huddersfield.
Monk needs to have a few strong words with Jansson
Jansson picked up another booking against Blackburn, which marked his eleventh of the season. Now, he’s already received suspensions for five and 10 bookings this season and he must ensure he doesn’t receive another one after 15, which will bring a three-match ban. Leeds did not sign another centre-back in January, meaning that they are slightly reliant on Kyle Bartley and Jansson remaining available with Liam Cooper their only senior cover. Another suspension for the 25-year-old Leeds star could have a detrimental affect on where the Whites finish this season and Monk has to have strong words with him to ensure that he avoids these bookings. The one against Blackburn marked his fourth yellow in five matches, which is unacceptable.
Hernandez must start
Pablo Hernandez was left on the bench as the line-ups were announced, which came as much surprise to the Leeds supporters. However, after a poor first half for the Yorkshire giants the Spaniard was brought on at half time for Sacko. The attacker was pivotal in his side’s victory and played in a killer ball from a set-piece which Jansson could not miss. The experienced attacking midfielder must now be a guaranteed starter for Sunday’s vital clash against the Terriers.
In other Leeds news, fans reacted on Twitter to Hernandez’ place on the bench before the match.
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