Izzy Brown played the full 120 minutes as Leeds United’s under-23s enjoyed a dramatic victory.
It seems like a lifetime ago that Izzy Brown was being touted as the man that was going to see Leeds across the line in the Championship promotion race once he was fully fit and ready to fill the number 10 void in Marcelo Bielsa’s squad.
Brown was never expected to be involved with the first-team before Christmas due to a long-term injury. Nevertheless, he would surely admit that his loan spell has not played out how he expected it to.
The forward has been scoring goals regularly for the under-23s, but has managed just one touch for the senior side so far. After being included in numerous squads, he got the chance to make his debut as Leeds chased an equaliser at Queens Park Rangers last month. Unfortunately, he was unable to provide the spark the Whites desperately needed on that night.
Since then, he has had to look on from the sidelines with Tyler Roberts enjoying his best run of form since arriving at Elland Road. And a spot on the wing looks just as unobtainable right now.
It would be little surprise however, if he was included in the squad to face Sheffield United this weekend in a game that looks set to be so important that any notable contribution from any player could see them potentially secure their place in folklore – depending on how the rest of the promotion race plays out.
But it has perhaps become a little less likely that he will get the chance to get out onto the pitch against the Blades after Leeds’ latest under-23 game, which saw the Whites knock Fulham out of the Premier League Cup on penalties.
Carlos Corberan’s side were forced to put in a gruelling shift. The Whites made two changes at the break, and were forced into using their final substitution moments into the second-half when goalkeeper Harrison Male was sent off.
That left the likes of Brown to play the 120 minutes. And it arguably showed towards the end that the Chelsea-owned had given everything to try and see Leeds through. He did score the equaliser that would ultimately ensure the game went all the way, but he was struggling to run towards the end, and his hold up play once he went up front rarely provided the home side with the breather they desperately needed.
The minutes will benefit Brown in the remaining weeks of the campaign. But as Thursday evening was unlike anything he has had to contend with since returning from injury, it would be no surprise if he required a little longer to recover – and thus, there must be greater doubt over whether he will get the chance to feature against Sheffield United.
It was a mammoth shift from every Leeds player who played the entire game. But perhaps, Bielsa may need convincing that it was not the kind of shift that took too much of the tank for the loanee to feature in such an important game this weekend.
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