If not for bad luck, Leeds United would have no luck whatsoever.
Leeds were leading 1-0 and cruising away to West Ham United this afternoon when disaster struck.
Midway through the first half, Whites boss Marcelo Bielsa was forced into not one, but two injury-related substitutions.
First, Adam Forshaw, who has spent most of the last two years out injured, pulled up with a hamstring issue, before Junior Firpo was removed seconds later with the same problem.
The Elland Road outfit were forced to name a multitude of inexperienced teenagers on the bench due to existing injuries, so adding these two to the pile – particularly Forshaw – is simply a devastating blow for the West Yorkshire club.
Here’s how former Leeds star Simon Johnson reacted to the double substitution on Twitter.
Courage
Despite the double blow, Leeds showed immense courage in adversity, which they so often do under Bielsa.
West Ham pegged them back twice, before Jack Harrison, who scored the Whites’ first two goals, completed his hat-trick to make it 3-2 on the 60-minute mark.
Mateusz Klich had a goal chalked off due to offside following a VAR check later in the second half but, ultimately, Harrison’s treble was enough.
However, there’s simply no doubt that the victory has been tarnished due to the exacerbated injury situation.
And hopefully for Firpo and Forshaw – especially the latter – they aren’t sidelined for too long.
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