It’s the first day of pre-season for Leeds United with less than five weeks to go until the start of the new Championship season. The Whites won’t be on the Thorp Arch field today while they go through various tests and medical examinations at Leeds Beckett University.
However, the players will be out on the turf later this week and despite no head coach being in place, they’ll be striving to put their best foot forward and catch the eye in training.
Some, though, will be keen to use the next few weeks as an opportunity to draw a line under last season’s struggles and start afresh by proving a point. Here’s three Leeds United players that will be looking to do exactly that.
Patrick Bamford
It’s fair to say last season wasn’t Bamford’s finest in a white shirt. He cut a frustrated figure at times as he struggled for form, fitness and confidence and his performances, particularly towards the end of the campaign, saw him singled out for criticism by supporters.
As such, while he’ll be keen not to look back on it too frequently, he may be using his struggles as motivation this summer as he prepares to attack the Championship with the Whites. As one of the senior figures at the club and a valued member of the Thorp Arch leadership group, Bamford knows he will be responsible for helping to set the tone on the training ground.
Read more: Leeds United stars absent from day one of pre-season as trio close in on exits
But, he’ll be keen to focus on himself, get his body right and put himself in a position where he can hit the ground running and silence the critics that came last time around.
Dan James
Despite playing a role in Leeds’ first few games of the campaign, James was deemed to be surplus to requirements last summer and subsequently he was allowed to join Fulham on a season-long loan. Unfortunately, that loan didn’t quite go to plan and he struggled to make an impact for the Cottagers, starting just five Premier League games.
As such, he returns to Elland Road this summer with something to prove to those decision makers who remain at the club and also himself after one of the toughest spells in his career to date. James knows he has what it takes to excel in the second tier, having caught the eye during his time with Swansea City, and the winger will be keen to kick on as he looks to get his career back on track and put some wind in his sails once again.
He isn’t due back at Thorp Arch until next week, meaning he’ll have just four weeks of pre-season and he’ll miss the clash against his former club Manchester United, but he'll hope to be involved in games against Monaco and Hearts
Joe Gelhardt
Gelhardt was another to spend a chunk of last season out on loan, joining Sunderland in January just in time to play a role in their play-off push. It came following a tough spell at Elland Road as he found his impact limited by his struggle to get minutes on the pitch.
The youngster struggled initially with the Black Cats but he did bag three goals as Tony Mowbray’s side secured fifth spot in the Championship table, but his performances couldn’t help the Wearside outfit through the challenge of Luton Town, who went on to secure promotion. Gelhardt’s social media posts suggest he has been working hard over the summer months to return to Thorp Arch in shape and he’ll be one who has the bit between his teeth in training, especially when the new man comes in.
Gelhardt knows he has competition for a spot in the Whites’ line-up, with Bamford, Georginio Rutter and several youngsters also competing for the striker spot in Leeds’ line-up this season. But, he’ll also know he has the chance to give the head coach some food for thought should he catch the eye over the next five weeks.
