Former Leeds United ace takes ‘dig’ at club as Whites loanee ‘compared’ to an ox

Leeds United are yet to appoint a new manager as they approach their third match since Jesse Marsch’s sacking. The club have confirmed that Michael Skubala will continue to lead the team into their upcoming fixtures as the board search for the American’s replacement.

The Whites have so far put on two improved performances against Manchester United, though only managed to claim a point out of the two meetings.

Away from United’s managerial search, here are the rest of the recent headlines...

“I was lucky”

Elia Caprile has taken a swipe at Leeds United following his summer departure. The Italian joined the Whites in 2020 but failed to make a single senior appearance before he opted to return to his home country with Serie B club Bari.

When asked why he chose to leave Elland Road in the summer by Media Gol, Caprile said: “Why the choice of Bari in the summer? They believed in me, I was lucky with this. Bari and sporting director Polito have believed in me.”

The 21-year-old joined Leeds six months before Ilan Meslier made his stay permanent and Caprile then failed to knock the Frenchman off his perch. Meslier became the youngest starting goalkeeper in the Premier League and has been exceptional since the Whites won promotion, so any chance of first team football for Caprile was always going to be very limited.

However, the shotstopper looks to be enjoying life back in Italy as Bari sit third in the second division, with Caprile conceding just 26 goals in 24 games and also picking up seven clean sheets.

Praise for Joffy

Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray has praised Joe Gelhardt following a positive performance in his third appearance for the club. The striker joined the Black Cats on loan in January but is yet to score his first goal in the Championship.

However, Gelhardt arguably put on his best display yet as they thrashed QPR 3-0 on Tuesday night. The 20-year-old troubled the defence and came close to getting off the mark on a number of occasions, including a shot rattling the bar in the second half.

Mowbray has been impressed by what he has seen from Gelhardt so far and has expressed his trust in the youngster. Speaking after Tuesday’s win, the Sunderland boss said: “He will score goals for us. He’s a kid who’s played ten minutes here and ten minutes there for Leeds United. He’s hardly played 90 minutes, which is why I was taking him off ready for Saturday so he can give us another hour or 70 minutes.

“Yet he’s strong as an ox, he works his socks off, and he has a rocket in his left foot. He’ll score goals, he’s a really talented boy.

“He just needs to understand how our team plays and the demands on him, because he is a young boy who has always been behind [Patrick] Bamford and all these foreign Premier League players at Leeds. He was getting ten minutes here and there, so for him to come into our team and be asked to play 70, 80, 90 minutes every three days is a huge ask for the kid.”

Joffy will undoubtedly bag plenty of game time during his time on Wearside after their star striker, Ross Stewart, now out injured for the rest of the season. The Scot’s absence leaves Gelhardt as the only recognised striker at the club.