Leeds United have some very tricky fixtures ahead, away from just their crunch tie with Sean Dyche’s Nottingham Forest up next.
Looking at their intimidating fixture list, it does appear as if sealing a win at the City Ground for Daniel Farke’s Whites is crucial to fixing the dour mood around the Premier League new boys, with Aston Villa, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Liverpool then on the agenda, after this battle near the foot of the division.
Losing to the Tricky Trees and then being faced with that onslaught of tough matches directly after, really could intensify the pressure on Farke’s shoulders, as he attempts to guide his lowly team away from being sucked into a relegation dog-fight.
The German will likely make some changes for the crucial showdown in Nottinghamshire, with Brenden Aaronson one figure who could be fearing for his starting spot down the right wing.
Why Aaronson could be benched
Aaronson has always been a slightly controversial figure at Elland Road, with the American definitely prone to an off-performance or two, away from lighting up the Premier League on occasion.
Against West Ham United to close out October, the ex-Union Berlin playmaker looked at his terrifying best, with a goal put away after three minutes.
That was then backed up by Aaronson winning eight duels and completing all three of his dribbles, as per Sofascore, as a tricky livewire the Hammers just couldn’t contain.
That’s what makes the hot-and-cold number 11’s drop-off against Brighton and Hove Albion so frustrating, with Aaronson only winning a meagre three duels and failing to register a single shot on goal, as the Whites were trounced 3-0 on the South Coast.
After all, Farke has been shoehorning Aaronson into his starting XI this season on the right flank owing to plenty of injury problems in his camp, with the Championship title winner far more suited to a number ten spot.
AM
63
9 + 5
RW
15
1 + 0
RM
4
0
CF
2
0
LM
2
0
Indeed, that opening strike against Nuno Espirito Santo’s men was actually Aaronson’s first-ever goal for Leeds when not lining up in a more familiar attacking midfield position.
But, with the return of this attacking star from injury, Aaronson’s days as Leeds’ main starter on the right channel look to be numbered, as the ace in question could also finally get a hit-and-miss Dominic Calvert-Lewin firing.
Leeds could now unleash "unstoppable" star
Leeds won’t be giving up on Calvert-Lewin just yet, despite the ex-Everton marksman experiencing a wobbly start to life in West Yorkshire.
He does only have one meagre goal next to his name from eight Premier League outings, but he has also spurned five big chances along the way, meaning he is, at least, getting into the correct positions to try and add to his slim Whites tally.
Farke will desperately be trying to work out a combination that gets the number nine in amongst the goals on a more regular basis, with Daniel James perhaps the winger Calvert-Lewin needs to bounce off of, to finally hit an Elland Road purple patch.
James and Calvert-Lewin, owing to the Welshman’s injury issues so far this season, have only lined up alongside each other for a paltry 34 minutes, with a blistering partnership perhaps now ready to be unearthed, if the former Manchester United attacker is placed into the starting XI in Aaronson’s spot away at Forest.
After all, while James did steal the majority of the headlines last season in the Championship for his bumper 12-goal haul, he did also pick up nine assists, with the £25m trickster amassing a whopping 16 big chances created in total.
That will be music to the ears of the one-time Toffees talisman, who has often cut an isolated figure this campaign next to Aaronson.
Moreover, even though he has been restricted to just 277 minutes of top-flight action so far, James has picked up one big chance created this campaign, too, as James now tries to hit his “unstoppable” best in attack again as a tricky, front-foot attacker, as Statman Dave once labelled him.
The worry will be if Calvert-Lewin sticks to his end of the bargain, but there is an electric presence inside of the ex-England international, too, when he gets into his groove.
With James also victorious the last time he travelled to the City Ground as a Cottagers loanee, standing out as a good omen, Farke will hope this potential change spurs his side on to a rare away win.