The Elland Road has been bereft of the glamour of the top tier of English football for more than a decade. Their lead for the top-six race might be a cosy one apparently, but their form in the recent times hasn’t been very consistent. The Championship season is far from over and let’s not count out the chances of a shocker already. Garry Monk’s side shouldn’t take their handsome lead for granted and get back to unearth a bit of flamboyance back into their tactical setup. Here are three things they must look into to register a strong finish to the league and ensure a spot in the playoffs.
1. Offer More To The Prolific Goal-Getter
The non-stop effort from New Zealand international Chris Wood has made Monk’s outfit a threatening force this season and has been arguably the most important reason for the illumination of the faces at the Elland Road. However, more often than not, he has been facing a serial dearth of chances owing to an evident lack of support up front.
He has been finding himself isolated in the final third many a times and there is a paramount need for Pablo Hernandez to up his ante. Over-reliance on Wood has made them very predictable and it is high time for the Whites to move a yard away from the conventionality.
2. Use This Player Over Sacko
Make no mistake, Hadi Sacko is indeed a very industrious player who rarely leaves any blade of the grass unattended, has that raw pace running up and down his legs. But then, he might be enigmatic but he is quite erratic and wayward as well. His woeful crosses do raise a lot of concerns and the Peacocks are paying a price of trusting him way too much.
Acquired from Swansea City on loan, Monk should try out Madou Barrow from here on. The promising winger is a natural threat to the opponents and with the Premier League experience, he has to his name, ensuring a consistent attack down the wings could very well be expected from Barrow as this slot is still not a fully utilized zone.
3. Cushion Their Backline
Despite the fact that Kyle Bartley and Pontus Jansson have been the face of the defensive line of the club, the former has been under a lot of pressure. Robert Green has been tested way too much lately owing to the repeated stretching of the Leeds United’s defensive setup, as a result of which they have started to be quite leaky.
The likes of Eunan O’Kane, Ronaldo Vieira, and Liam Bridcutt must offer a cushion to the backline from getting exploited by terminating the offensive surges of the opponents to maintain their stronghold in the play-off spots.
