Jack Harrison has endured a difficult time since arriving at Leeds United in the summer.
What has arguably been particularly frustrating about Jack Harrison’s loan spell at Leeds so far is that the winger has shown that he is capable of producing a game-changing performance.
Harrison’s display in the 3-0 win over Preston North End in September hinted that Marcelo Bielsa may have stumbled upon an inspired deal by bringing him in from Manchester City in the summer.
Unfortunately for the Whites, the 22-year-old has arguably not managed to replicate anything like that performance since that day at Elland Road.
And with Jack Clarke catching the eye almost every time he steps onto the pitch, and Izzy Brown edging swiftly towards being included in Bielsa’s plans, Harrison perhaps cannot afford to squander any chance that comes his way – whether that be with the first-team or with the under-23s.
He featured for the latter on Tuesday as Carlos Corberan’s men travelled to Burnley. The youngster played the first 45 minutes in what proved to be a stunning 6-3 win for Leeds.
Harrison did not perform badly at all when he was on the pitch. In fact, he was arguably one of Leeds’ best players in the first-half, providing the assist for the first of Patrick Bamford’s three goals and looking extremely dangerous.
However, his display seemed to be somewhat overshadowed after he replaced by Clarke at the break. The 18-year-old was sensational, scoring a fantastic goal, providing assists and causing all sorts of problems as Leeds scored five times after the interval.
Harrison’s all-round game is more polished than Clarke’s right now, but the latter is creating excitement every time he plays and is backing up his moments of brilliance by producing goals and assists.
So if Bielsa is considering which of the two men deserve the nod for the squad that face Bolton in the Championship this weekend, he surely must look at Clarke as the potential wildcard that has shown more.
Harrison’s performance against Burnley proved that he undoubtedly still has the capability to prove a fantastic signing at some stage this season.
But just as his 45 minutes seemed to open the door for the summer signing, Clarke’s subsequent display arguably managed to shut it emphatically.
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