Leeds United’s worst nightmare is set to come true as Patrick Bamford who suffered an injury in the u-23 clash against Bristol City is going to be out for a considerable period. The club didn’t say how long he is going to be out for, but the injury seems serious. The club reported that Bamford suffered damage in his posterior cruciate ligament and that kind of injury could mean United’s summer signing could be out for at least 2-3 months.
Suddenly Marcelo Bielsa’s plans could go awry as he is now left with only one proper first team striker in Kemar Roofe. The demanding fixtures of the Championship where a team often plays on Tuesdays and Saturdays can be physically draining for just one striker, and we feel it’s time for Bielsa to look at some replacements.
United were linked continuously with Jerry Mbakogu in the summer, but the move was not finalised, and United went on to sign Bamford in the summer. However, now Mbakogu is a free agent, and therefore the Whites can still land him even though the transfer period is already closed.
The 25-year-old striker was with Carpi last who are in the Italian second division, where he scored 37 goals in 133 appearances. The Nigerian is often compared to Didier Drogba due to his similar physical stature and playing style, and the Whites would be happy if Mbakogu can even turn out to be half as good as the Ivory Coast striker.
Mbakogu is adept at playing down the wings, but he is at his best when he starts in a central position as a target man. The Nigerian holds the ball well and gets his team-mates into the game. His link-up play is one of the underrated aspects of his game, and at Carpi along with those said number of goals, he went on to provide 22 assists.
Another thing which the forward does well is that he mixes up his game well. He sometimes comes up short and provides an option for his team-mates and other times he plays on the shoulders of the last defenders by making the run between the defensive lines.
The Whites were linked constantly with the Nigerian throughout the early part of the transfer window and maybe finally it’s time for Bielsa to get this deal done as depending on just Kemar Roofe for the next 2-3 months would be a bit too much to ask from the United’s top scorer. We have often seen Bielsa replacing Roofe around the 75-80 minute mark as the striker runs out of steam due to his high pressing game and for the time being, the gaffer might have to depend on certain young players like Ryan Edmundson or Tyler Roberts.
