Jack Clarke was surprisingly left out of the Leeds United matchday squad for their win on Tuesday night.
Like almost every one of his Leeds teammates, Jack Clarke had to spend a lengthy amount of time in the treatment room at one stage this season, with the winger spending more than one month out after being taken ill at Middlesbrough in February.
Given how worrying some of the scenes at the Riverside Stadium were, it was a huge boost for the Whites when Clarke returned to the side for the home game against Sheffield United in mid-March.
Since making his debut against Brentford in October, the 18-year-old has been a revelation. Some of Leeds’ most exciting moments this term have been inspired by Clarke’s trickery and frightening change of pace. Full-backs must know that he is going to try and dart down the wing when he runs towards them, and yet, they still seem incapable of halting his progress.
But since coming back from his illness, something has not quite clicked for the academy graduate. He has come off the bench against the Blades, Millwall and Birmingham and failed to make an impact in each of those games.
In fairness, he has spent less than an hour on the pitch across those three appearances, so it was always asking a lot of the teenager to expect him to immediately rediscover his best form.
But some supporters are wondering if he is fully fit following his illness. And that is why Marcelo Bielsa’s surprise selection decision on Tuesday may have been the Leeds boss’ latest inspired move.
Clarke was left out of the matchday squad for the trip to Preston North End, with under-23 teammate Jordan Stevens being promoted to the bench after arguably outshining the wide-man for Carlos Corberan’s side the previous day.
Stevens looks to be playing with a lot of confidence, so it may not be a big surprise if he temporarily moves ahead of Clarke in the pecking order. And if Clarke is still working his way back towards full health and sharpness, then he may actually be grateful to Bielsa.
Clarke is one player that the fans have no intention of putting pressure on. When he has made an error in the past, the supporters have usually applauded the intention rather than criticised the mistake.
Nevertheless, the pressure is absolutely on Leeds right now. With five games to go, their automatic-promotion hopes are back in their own hands, and with that, tension is obviously building rapidly.
Leeds got the job done at Deepdale, but there was a brief period while it was goalless where it appeared that the Whites would need that moment of brilliance, now synonymous with Clarke, to create that one golden chance.
If Clarke is not fully fit, then bringing him on when Leeds desperately needed a winner may have backfired as his confidence could have taken a real knock if he was unable to step up.
Of course, Leeds fans would love to see Clarke back to his best as quickly as possible. But given the high stakes, perhaps Bielsa has made the best decision by seemingly taking him out of the firing line on this occasion.
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