For months there has been talk about Leeds United needing a new left-back, but what if there was a way for them to improve that position without dipping into the market?
Well, luckily for Marcelo Bielsa and Victor Orta, Gareth Southgate may have just shown them how to improve Leeds’ left-back spot without even signing a new full-back.
It sounds crazy, but bear with us.
Left-back has been a problem position for Leeds this season, there’s no doubt about that, but let’s not forget that they already have a top-class full-back in their squad in the shape of Stuart Dallas.
However, there’s a problem, Dallas has established himself as one of Leeds’ most important midfielders, so there’s no real scope for him to play as a left-back at Leeds, but that could quickly change.
Indeed, we saw Kalvin Phillips play in a much more advanced role for England on Sunday against Croatia, and it has to be said that he was brilliant there, winning Man of the Match in his international tournament debut.
Marcelo Bielsa will surely have had an eye on that game, and he may be tempted to move Phillips out of his regular number six role into the spot Stuart Dallas currently possesses.
Think about it, moving Phillips forward would allow Dallas to slot in at left-back, solving Leeds’ problem there, and while there would be a gap in defensive midfield, that could easily be filled by Adam Forshaw, Jamie Shackleton, or even a new signing such as Harrison Reed.
Of course, Bielsa may see things differently, and to be honest, we wouldn’t argue with him if he did. After all, Phillips is a great holding player and Dallas has just won Leeds’ Player of the Year while predominantly appearing as a midfielder.
However, if Bielsa wanted to solve his left-back problem using an in-house solution rather than going out and buying a new defender, this could be something worth considering.
Gareth Southgate may not be the tactical genius that Bielsa is, but he’s really unlocked something in Phillips that could help Leeds in more ways than one.
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