Opportunity will knock for one Leeds United player when Manchester City visit Elland Road two weeks today. Tyler Adams’s suspension guarantees at least one slot from the last competitive match is up for grabs when the Premier League reconvenes.
Adam Forshaw might be the smart-money bet for picking out Marc Roca’s partner when the champions visit, but his injury record and limited minutes this season don’t make it a foregone conclusion. The likes of Mateusz Klich, Sam Greenwood and Darko Gyabi are waiting in the wings too.
Gyabi, not even 19 until February, was quickly promoted from the under-21 ranks and into the senior fold as Jesse Marsch took the cream of that crop under his wing. Along with Sonny Perkins, Mateo Joseph and Archie Gray, Gyabi’s potential has been acknowledged by the coaching staff.
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After regular inclusions in matchday squads, Gyabi finally made his professional debut in the EFL Cup clash at Wolverhampton Wanderers last month. As there was in the summer, the teenager saw more first-team minutes in the Elche friendly last week.
While he may feel he is down the pecking order based on Marsch’s selections this season, the former Man City man knows anything could happen to thrust him into the action. He just wants to be ready.
“Football is weird,” he said. “Anything can happen. You could be training and then maybe an injury or illness and you’re in it.
“It’s not about feeling closer [than I did at Man City], it’s just being ready for when you do get that chance and I just need to keep learning and training hard so when that chance comes it’s an easier transition for me.”
Marsch has already given Premier League minutes to six players who were younger than 21 when the season started. After the precedent set by Marcelo Bielsa and continued recruitment in the under-21s, it’s clear to Gyabi how keen Leeds will be to clear his pathway.
“With Sam, Joffy (Joe Gelhardt), all the other players as well, there’s an opportunity if you’re ready for the challenge, but it’s another thing being ready for the challenge,” he said. “It’s not just the opportunity, but you also have to take the opportunity when you do get it.”
Time will tell whether the teenager is thrust into that opportunity against his former club, the champions of England.
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