Izzy Brown was left out of Leeds United’s matchday squad for their latest Championship fixture.
If one thing was made particularly clear in the last week, it is perhaps how much work Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa feels obliged to do before he is happy to make any single tactical decision.
The meticulous maverick has got little wrong since arriving in the Championship. Nevertheless, the Whites have opened the door for their promotion rivals on a couple of occasions in recent weeks.
Leeds were beaten 2-1 at Stoke City on Saturday. It was a surprising performance from the Whites, who just could not rediscover the fluency and intensity that saw them decimate Derby at Elland Road in their previous fixture.
The game once again highlighted something that some would certainly deem to be an issue within the Whites’ squad. The last time Bielsa brought on a player older than 20 came when Patrick Bamford came off the bench to score the winner at Bolton in mid-December.
Tyler Roberts and Jordan Stevens were both introduced when the score was 1-0, but could not make the impact that Leeds needed. And that perhaps makes Bielsa’s decision not to include Izzy Brown on the bench appear to be something of a mistake.
Brown is working his way back towards full fitness after such a lengthy period on the sidelines. He has played for the under-23s on a couple of occasions, but is yet to be included in the senior side since joining Leeds on loan.
Of course, he is not ready to play a substantial role for the first-team. But given that he played the full 90 minutes in the under-23 win against Crewe this month – scoring both of the goals in the victory – perhaps he should have been included on the bench.
Leeds did not go 2-0 down until the 88th minute. So perhaps Bielsa introducing Brown for the final five minutes could have proved to be inspired. His fitness may not be at the level it needs to be, but he is only going to gain match sharpness by playing for the first-team.
Stevens is a seriously exciting talent and looks to have a very bright future ahead of him. But there would not have been much confusion amongst the fans if he was not included in the squad on Saturday.
Brown may, at most, only be to play a very small role at this stage. And Bielsa’s cautious approach with the Chelsea man could reap greater rewards come the end of the season, but perhaps he will be wondering whether he made the right decision not taking a gamble and leaving him out as the stage could have been set for the summer signing to make himself an instant hero.
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