Barry Douglas has not featured for Leeds United since the start of the month.
Barry Douglas has told LUTV that it has been difficult to watch Leeds from the sidelines while he has been injured, but insisted that he is not far away from making his return.
Douglas has endured a difficult time at Elland Road. He had been injured for a month following the New Year’s Day defeat to Nottingham Forest, and has been missing since featuring for 45 minutes against Norwich City at the start of February.
The Yorkshire Evening Post reports that the £3 million signing could be in contention to feature for Marcelo Bielsa’s side when they face Bolton Wanderers this weekend. And ahead of a possible return, he admitted that he has not found it easy watching the team from the stands.
“It’s been a demanding period. Going into Christmas you exert a lot of physical and mental energy so it’s good to get a few days to reset, regroup and refocus,” he told LUTV.
“I’m hopefully not far away. It’s hard for me because I’m watching as a spectator but also as one of the boys, on edge. I want to be part of it and it’s difficult because there’s nothing I can do to help.”
Unfortunately for Douglas, there seems to be no guarantee that he will immediately regain his place once he returns to full fitness. Gjanni Alioski has generally been excellent at left-back, and Bielsa is clearly a big fan on what the Macedonia international brings to the side.
Douglas has not enjoyed the best spell since joining Leeds. But if he can rediscover the form that he showed at Wolves last year, he could be a seriously important player as the Whites look to capitalise on their current position in the Championship.
Few players in the second tier have more natural talent from set-piece and crossing situations than Douglas. And perhaps Leeds fans will get to see that side of the 29-year-old much more often now that he has had a taste of what it is like to watch on from the sidelines.
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