Junior Firpo certainly looked like a man with a point to prove as Leeds United FC kicked off their pre-season preparations in York last week.
Not content with setting up Robin Koch’s opener, he then doubled the advantage with a clever header from a Jack Harrison corner. Yes, it was only pre-season. And yes, it was only Blackpool. But this was the sort of swashbuckling performance Leeds were expecting when they signed the former Spain U21 international from Barcelona for £13 million last summer.
But, as far as this luckless left-back is concerned, a stroke of misfortune is never far away. And as Firpo was condenmed to two months on the sidelines following yet another injury blow – one that rules him out of Leeds’ trip to Australia and their opening Premier League fixtures – Jesse Marsch would have been forgiven for wondering if the 25-year-old had a penchant for smashing mirrors and spilling salt.
Junior Firpo out for Leeds United
“He’s most likely out for eight weeks,” Marsch tells Leeds Live. “We’re hopeful that (his recovery is) a little bit faster. Junior healed really, really quickly last time.”
There is a difference between being hopeful and being naïve, of course. And will Marsch know, realistically speaking, that Firpo is unlikely to be available for any of Leeds’ first seven league outings. And given that he is the only senior left-back in Marsch’s squad, this is probably not a problem that can be solved internally.
“We’re looking very closely at Leif Davis and we think he’s done really well. We have also other solutions, like Pascal (Struijk) and potentially Jack (Harrison),” the American adds.
“But, in the whole process, we were always evaluating what we would need at that position. So obviously (Firpo’s absence) highlights that a little bit more clearly.
“We have time. When it comes to recruitment, I believe that Victor Orta and (scout) Gaby Ruiz do an incredible job of looking around the world, understanding the demands of the style the manager wants to play, and then providing really good possibilities.”
Kai Wagner incoming?
During Marsch’s first summer at the helm, Leeds have made a concerted effort to reunite their head coach with players he knows and trusts. Tyler Adams, Rasmus Kristensen and Brendan Aaronson have played under Marsch before. Red Bull Salzburg’s Mohamed Camara is another target.
And while Kai Wagner might not have experience of life in a Marsch team, the German-born left-back is a player the 48-year-old will know well on the back of some dynamic performances across the Atlantic. Per Transfermarkt, Leeds, Middlesbrough and Burnley are all admirers of the £3.5 Wagner, dubbed ‘one of the best left-backs’ in the MLS and a Supporters Shield winner with Philadelphia Union.
What’s more, Burnley appear to be out the race with Ian Maatsen arrivinng from Chelsea.
“Kai has been one of the best left-backs in our league since he arrived,” says Union coach Jim Curtin. “And we believe he is still far from his ceiling. We ask our defenders to dominate an entire flank by themselves, and Kai continually shows he is up to the challenge.”
Grabbing an assist in Union’s 7-0 thumping of DC United last time out, Wagner, like Kristensen, is the epitome of what Marsch wants from a full-back; Aggressive, adventurous and capable of providing pinpoint quality from out wide. Wagner takes a mean set-piece too – an area of Leeds’ game that could do with some work.
And Firpo’s latest injury blow may be all the encouragement need to turn their interest into something more concrete.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
