According to the latest reports, Leeds United are likely to push Robbie Gotts and Jordan Stevens to the senior team soon after the duo impressed at the u-23 level. The club has been reeling with injuries of late, but things are likely to improve after the international break as all the major absentees are set to be back by that time.
However, Marcelo Bielsa is not stopping in pushing some of the talented youngsters into the first team with Robbie Grots and Jordan Stevens the two new names who are next in line to join the senior squad.
Robbie Gotts is a winger, and one can understand why he is in the queue to get some exposure with the senior team as the Whites currently lack depth in the wide regions. The 18-year-old has been compared with Wayne Rooney for his style of play, and the club faithful would hope that he can turn out to be half as good as the English star. Only time would tell though whether Robbie has ‘Gotts’ what it takes to shine in the Championship.
Jordan Stevens is a defensive midfielder who can also play in a more central role as well. Central midfield is one of the positions where United seem to have a little bit of depth as Stuard Dallas can fill in that role along with Adam Forshaw. Therefore Stevens might have to wait longer to see some first-team action.
Jack Clarke and Ryan Edmundson were recently involved with the first team, and this showcases how much Bielsa is keen on promoting youth talents. However, one can look at this from another point of view as well, as it reveals that United does not have enough senior players at their disposal to fill certain positions in the squad. Therefore, the manager has to look at the academy to provide cover and balance to the roster.
Modern day football at the top level has become ruthless as we hardly see any young homegrown academy players given a proper run into the team as managers are often under pressure to deliver results. To achieve that, he turns to the transfer market to bring in experienced players, and as a result, these young players are either sent on loan or continue playing with the reserve side.
Leeds United off late have quite a few young players in the team, and most of them are coming from the academy. However, the club also needs some experienced heads in some positions as those players would know how to handle themselves in crunch situations when the race for the Premier League spots would be at its peak.
