During the international break, Leeds United is worried about the health of a few important players. One player in particular is in a race against time to return to the UK in time to train for Friday night’s big match against joint-leaders Sheffield United. The Elland Road encounter is one of the most eagerly-anticipated of the season so far, with both sides expected to contend for promotion this season.
United have concerns of their own, with influential defender Harry Souttar embarking on a gruelling 21,000, 47-hour journey around the world on Australia duty. But they aren’t alone, with Leeds having a number of players flying away with their countries at a time when they have a number of injury issues to contend with already
Skipper Ethan Ampadu will miss the reunion with one of his former clubs after being ruled out until the new year while Ilia Gruev and Max Wober have been forced to go under the knife to correct meniscus problems. Winger Dan James has also been missing in recent weeks and boss Daniel Farke will be praying that his international contingent don’t report back to Thorp Arch with any major issues ahead of the Blades clash.
That leaves Aaronson around 62 hours to get back to Leeds ahead of the Blades clash and reacclimatise, with Mexico seven hours ahead of the UK and around a 10-hour flight time. Elsewhere Firpo is on Dominican Republic duty against Antigua and Barbuda on Saturday and Tuesday, with the likes of Rodon, Gnonto and Joseph a little closer to home with games dotted around Europe.
In addition, a number of other Souttar United players are now serving their country’s national team, including Adam Davies, Kieffer Moore, and Rhys Norrington-Davies, who will be joining Rodon in the Wales squad for matches against Montenegro and Iceland. Louie Marsh is on standby for the England Elite Squad following his first international goal during the most recent break, while Jesurun Rak-Sakyi is part of the England U21 squad for their home qualifiers against Ukraine and Azerbaijan.