Leeds defender is surely running out of chances.
Liam Cooper had a game to forget for Leeds in midweek although he was not the only player culpable for conceding two goals.
Laurens De Bock and Felix Wiedwald were both at fault for Derby’s goals too but as club captain, Cooper’s form continues to be a concern.
Cooper has been at Leeds since 2014 and this is his second spell with the armband, but there is real worry over whether he is good enough to be a starter let alone captain.
Off the pitch Cooper is a shining example, and he speaks well in post-game interviews, taking responsibility for his mistakes, but on the field he veers towards liability more than dominant centre-half too often.
It is a worry that the mistakes keep on happening; he has just come back from a ban for his second red card of the season.
Rustiness is to be expected in his first game back after a ban, but into his fourth season at Leeds, this is not really an acceptable scenario for Cooper to be in and is a problem of his own making.
Leeds are falling short once again of making the play-offs and Cooper does not look like the answer in defence, especially compared to how Kyle Bartley played last season.
Cooper still could be useful for Leeds this season, but it is not like they can go and buy another centre-back at present.
But if he cannot lift his game then it will be time for the club to invest in a top drawer defender this summer to partner Pontus Jansson.
Indeed the Leeds hierarchy may already feel they have seen enough.
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