DALLAS WOWBOY Bielsa backs Stuart revival
MARCELO BIELSA is concon vinced Stuart Dallas will soon be hitting the heights he scaled last season when he walked off with Leeds’ top individual awards.
Man for all reasons Dallas, who has been filling in at right- back during Leeds’ current injury crisis, enjoyed a stunning debut season in the Premier League.
Topping the supporters’ poll for Player of the Season, he got the dressing room vote too and just for good measure won Goal of the Season for his spectacular effor t against Manchester City in April.
But like most of his teammat e s , the Northern Irishman has not been at his best so far this term as Leeds have struggled to match last season’s exploits.
Exploit
They go into this afternoon’s game against West Ham at Elland Road still searching for a first league win of the campaign.
Bielsa, without several key men, will once again exploit Dallas’s versatility, asking the midfielder to continue playing in a makeshift defence.
And he’s backing the 30-year- old to rediscover the form he showed a few months ago.
“His performances have not been at the same level as last year and there are reasons to understand why that is the case,” said Bielsa.
“But every game he plays, he performs a little bit better than the previous one.
“And I have every confidence that on Saturday or in a short space of time, he’s going to come back to his high level.
“In fact, it is more than just confidence. I am sure of it.”
Bielsa accepts that Leeds have room for improvement at both ends of the pitch and refuses to use injuries as an excuse for the winless run.
“I never imagined anything would be easy,” he said.
“We are conceding more chances than we should and there have been problems with our efficiency (in attack).
Aspects
“We have a margin for correction in both aspects but we have sufficient players and we are prepared to adapt to the absences.
“I can’t tell you the injuries don’t matter when so many players are unavailable and it’s an added difficulty when players in the same position are out.
“But there comes a time when you have to demonstrate that the project can resolve these uncomfortable situations.”
Patrick Bamford’s ankle injury puts him among up to seven Leeds players who could be unavailable today.
Diego Llorente, Robin Koch and Pascal Struijk (suspension) are out, while Raphinha, Luke Ayling and Jack Harrison are in a race to be fit.
West Ham are without full-back Ryan Fredericks ( groin), with Michail Antonio returning after serving a one
match ban.
Bond
Their formidable defensive midfield partnership was key to England’s run to the Euro 2020 final during the summer, while the duo also forged a bond off the pitch.
Hammers boss Moyes ( said: “The partnership with
Declan and Kalvin Phillips has been really good.
“They are both incredibly energetic, they are both improving players. Kalvin is 25, Declan’s 22. They are young midfield players and they have lots of room to get better because of their age.
“When England players play against each other, there’s always an attraction. They play in similar roles, so that makes it attractive, seeing two young English players against each other on the same pitch.”