Jack Clarke showed his class on a number of occasions as Leeds United’s under-23s kicked off their season with a dramatic win.
Jack Clarke was one of a number of Leeds first-team stars who were involved in the under-23s’ first game of the season on Monday as Marcelo Bielsa looks to keep them sharp.
Bielsa has named the same starting lineup for each of Leeds’ three Championship games this term. Clarke’s only involvement so far came in the Carabao Cup clash with Salford City, and he was not even in the squad for the game with Wigan Athletic at the weekend.
The winger may be disappointed that he is relying on under-23 fixtures for game-time at the moment, but the battle with Millwall still provided a platform to impress ahead of the first-team’s clash with Brentford on Wednesday.
And it is fair to say that Clarke was, perhaps unsurprisingly, one of the most impressive players on show as Leeds won 3-2 in dramatic circumstances. Mateusz Bogusz scored a 96th minute winner after the Lions had come from 2-0 down during the second-half.
Clarke was exciting. The 18-year-old would have evoked memories of his best form for the first-team last season as he ran at full-backs and left them with little chance as he danced past them, either to get down the line or cut back and break into the box.
He also produced an outstanding pass from inside his own half to Jordan Stevens that allowed the former Forest Green man to cross the ball into Eddie Nketiah who found the back of the net for Leeds’ second goal.
It was a brilliant display. And yet, it is perhaps fair to say that it would not be a huge surprise to see Clarke missing from the matchday squad once again when the Bees come to Elland Road.
After being taken ill at Middlesbrough last season, the teenager, understandably, did not look to be the same player that had changed games on a number of occasions in the months prior. The only issue was that he continued to look a class above whenever he played for the under-23s.
Even when struggling for the first-team, he appeared to be too good for the level that Carlos Corberan’s side play at, so his display this week would not have come as any surprise to anyone – and that is the problem that he is now facing.
Clarke impressing in the under-23s may no longer make Bielsa sit up and take notice, especially with Leeds looking even stronger in wide areas this season.
It is an encouraging sign that Clarke appears to be returning to his best form after the frightening scenes at the Riverside Stadium. But unfortunately, it may take something even more special for the wide-man to force his way back into the first-team fold given that he did struggle to take that form into the senior side when he did get the chance in the latter stages of last season.
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