Jesse Marsch could be forgiven for watching the last week’s international games through his fingers. The Leeds United head coach was forced to part with a number of players this month as they linked up with their respective national teams and he will have been keeping a close eye on their performances.
Of course, Marsch will have been keen to see his players excel on the international stage, but he will have been wincing the moment they were involved in a slight scrape for fear of picking up an injury. The Whites are preparing to enter a key period of the Premier League season and the last thing they would want is key men breaking down while away from Thorp Arch.
However, it seems as though those involved for their countries will return to West Yorkshire intact and firing on all cylinders after a successful time away. Leeds haven’t played a game for almost one whole month now and it’s fair to say those internationals within the squad took their opportunity to blow away any cobwebs that may have emerged in that time.
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That can only help Leeds when they return to action against Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon at Elland Road. Sure, some players will have gone a month without seeing action, such as Robin Koch, Pascal Struijk or Jack Harrison, while others have played one match for the Under-21s a fortnight ago.
However, a majority of those who have been away on international duty will return heartened and full of confidence. Luis Sinisterra has probably been the star performer of the Whites’ travelling contingent, bagging three goals for Colombia in just two games.
The winger scored once in a 4-1 win over Guatemala before notching two more in a 45-minute outing against Mexico in California. Colombia failed to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar, but Sinisterra has certainly got his foot in the door with the national team moving forward.
His final two goals came at the Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, which is, of course, home to United shareholders San Francisco 49ers and he could be seen after the game holding up a Leeds scarf. Wilfried Gnonto will also return to Leeds with heaps of confidence after playing a key role in Italy’s qualification to the Nations League finals next summer.
Italy topped Group 3 followings wins over England and Hungary and Gnonto appeared in both games, starting the latter. The forward hasn’t made a first-team appearance for Leeds just yet, but there is an excitement to see him in action at Elland Road and he could be set to make a debut, more than likely off the bench, this weekend against Steven Gerrard’s side.
Rasmus Kristensen hasn’t had the most comfortable of starts to life at Leeds, but he’ll be boosted by his performances with Denmark in the Nations League. The right-back missed Leeds’ last game with injury and it’s fair to say his spot in the side is currently at risk, with Luke Ayling back from injury and pushing for a spot in the side.
However, he’ll have a something of a swagger after keeping the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Ferland Mendy quiet in a 2-0 win over World Cup holders France in Copenhagen. Illan Meslier kept a clean sheet in a 1-0 win over Germany, while Diego Llorente didn’t get a game but he was part of the Spain set-up that topped their Nations League group, sealed with a 1-0 win away at Portugal.
Tyler Adams and Brenden Aaronson both got run outs for the Unites States in friendlies against Japan and Saudi Arabia, while Mateusz Klich got a 20 minute spell on the field for Poland, which will help to keep him sharp ahead of a return to Premier League action.
Sonny Perkins and Darko Gyabi made headlines for their involvement with England U19s, with Perkins bagging five goals in three games, including a hat-trick against Georgia, while Gyabi captained the team and scored on Tuesday against Denmark. Those involvements will surely stand Leeds in good stead this weekend, helping to raise standards and reduce the risk of ring rust.
The above players will already have started returning to Thorp Arch and Marsch will be keen to get to get them back on the training field as preparations continue for Sunday’s crucial clash.
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