Leeds United were dealt a body blow recently when Eddie Nketiah was unable to feature against QPR. Marcelo Bielsa went on to confirm that the Arsenal youngster would have started if not for his injury. It was indeed unfortunate for the 21-year-old as he has been waiting in the wings for almost three months now to get a start in the Championship.
Bielsa provides an update on Nketiah
Bielsa recently went on to give an update on the injury and the future of Nketiah. It is known that Arsenal does have an option to recall the striker in January. The Argentine boss recently said (Yorkshire Evening Post), ”Week to week we evaluate the time of recovery. Now [it has been] one week and they told us one more week to see how he progresses. In the next seven days, I will inform you if he is able or must continue to recover.”
The manager was asked further about the timing of his injury and whether it raised a concern about his future at Elland Road. Bielsa then said, ”I think that if he feels comfortable with us, this is going to be the key for him to stay or not. It is for him to say, not for me. We have the same position as when he arrived at Leeds.”
Bielsa has clearly kept things in Nketiah’s hands at the moment. David Ornstein of the Athletic not too long ago provided an update that Arsenal are happy with Nktiah’s situation and they wouldn’t look to recall him back in January. However, now from Bielsa’s words, it seems that if Nketiah pushes for a move away in January, then the Whites might have to let him go.
Nketiah shows his frustration
It’s tough to say from outside how the striker currently feels about his situation. Nketiah in October showed some of his frustration by saying, ”It’s been disappointing for me not to start in the league, I went there to play games and get games.”
However, the fact that he won over Bielsa in recent weeks might keep him happy at Elland Road. It remains to be seen now what would transpire in the next few weeks. The injury has undoubtedly come at an unfortunate time.
However, with the international break around the corner, Nketiah might not miss a lot of games if he can recover in the next one or two week. As for his future, it seems to be in his hand, and it could probably go either way at this point.
