Speaking on the Official Leeds United podcast, Luke Ayling has spoken about captaining the club in Liam Cooper’s absence, sharing his sympathy for the defender.
The Scotland international is Leeds’ regular captain, but unfortunately, his chequered injury and disciplinary record has meant that he’s missed a number of big occasions.
After his red card against Manchester City, Cooper will miss the games against Manchester United and Liverpool, and Ayling says that although he’s happy to step in as captain, he’s gutted for Cooper.
“Well, I feel sorry for Coops. It feels like every big occasion, Coops is always either injured or suspended. We had the game against Birmingham last year and I was captain for that one, then Coops got injured before the season, so I was captain for the first game of the season. I feel sorry for him because he always seems to miss the big ones,” Ayling said.
It is a real shame for Cooper.
The game against Birmingham last season was of course Leeds’ centenary celebration, which Cooper missed, and he also didn’t get the opportunity to lead the team out in the Premier League upon their return.
Luckily for Leeds, Ayling is a fantastic understudy and a real leader on the pitch, so they still have a more than capable captain leading them when Cooper is out.
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