Leeds United have suffered with a number of injuries this season and it has affected the club both on and off the pitch.
Marcelo Bielsa has had to deal with key players missing for the majority of the 2021/22 campaign, with the most notable absentees being Kalvin Phillips and Patrick Bamford.
Liam Cooper has also been out for a sustained period of time and the Whites’ results have suffered as a consequence, picking up seven fewer points than at this stage last term.
Leeds had won nine matches, compared to just five after 21 games this season and they sat comfortably in mid-table with little to no fears of relegation.
There’s been a huge difference in the quality of the performances, too, as the Whites haven’t played with the same intensity, tempo and energy to their game.
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But this could be down to the amount of injuries they’ve suffered, especially along the spine of their team.
Meanwhile, at the back, Diego Llorente, Pascal Struijk and Liam Cooper have all been unavailable for periods of the season, which has reflected in Leeds’ dismal defensive record.
Another defender who has missed multiple matches is Robin Koch after he sustained a serious pelvic problem and the opening day of the season at Manchester United.
It forced the German international to miss over three months of action and he eventually returned for the 4-1 defeat against Arsenal in mid-December.
Although Koch has started every match since coming back into the side, he ended up sitting out 15 games in all competitions, including the Carabao Cup last-16 and trips to Manchester City and Chelsea.
In actual fact, Koch has cost the club a substantial £3,699,836 from his injury problems this season - which is the most expensive of any player in the Premier League.
A study by BonusFinder researched all the injuries and illnesses suffered by players with results showing which clubs have lost the most money from their players being out injured this term.
Koch tops this list, with Everton midfielder Andre Gomes in second (£2,564,384) and Sead Kolasinac, who recently made the move from Arsenal to Marseille, sits in third (£2,228,164).
Manchester United trio Raphael Varane, Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba are amongst the top 10, while Chelsea’s record signing Romelu Lukaku has cost the Blues a whopping £1,576,575 in wages from not playing.
The report used transfermarkt and spotrac to assemble this data.
It isn’t just Koch who has cost Leeds a vast amount of money this season, with Luke Ayling costing the club £666,740 whilst he was absent after suffering a knee problem in the 1-1 draw against Newcastle United in September.
Sam Greenwood, Adam Forshaw, Bamford and Struijk are currently out, however, the quartet might all be back for the trip to Aston Villa following the winter break.
The next month could be vital in the context of the Whites’ season, with games against Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United to come before March.
Bielsa will be hoping to get the majority of his squad back for the remainder of the campaign as they look to secure Premier League football for the third successive year.
