This week, Leeds United suffered their second consecutive loss away to West Brom, losing by a score of 1-0.
The Whites could have come quite close to Ipswich Town if they hadn’t had three poor performances in their final four games in December.
Eight missed points have been sandwiched between a victory over the Tractor Boys, bringing the deficit to second place to nine.
Following the defeat at Deepdale, Daniel Farke made changes to the Leeds lineup, inserting Willy Gnonto, Karl Darlow (enforced), Liam Cooper (enforced), Sam Byram, and Ilia Gruev.
Joel Piroe managed to hold onto his position after giving Preston a hard time, and he did it once more in spite of an early opening that he oddly took on his right foot when it appeared to be for his stronger left.
Apart from that, the Dutchman didn’t do much noteworthy in the last third, and when Farke changed formation late in the game, down 1-0, it didn’t help much either.
Leeds supporters are clamoring for an attacking midfielder as January approaches, and with good reason considering the team’s deficiency in that position.
To make the most of what he has, Farke may need to make some adjustments to his system in the interim while we wait patiently for that.
Leeds needs every player in the attack to contribute if they play a low block because they are vulnerable to teams that sit deep and prevent transitions.
As a second striker, Piroe has been relegated to a supporting role in build-up, relying more on his ability to find space behind the defense than on coordinating plays from the places he occupy.
It’s up for dispute whether Willy Gnonto should start up front in place of Georginio Rutter, who performed effectively in that area against Cardiff City on matchday one. It is evident that Piroe is ineffective in this role, and starting him up front would not help either, as he performs poorly when facing goalward.
