When is Marcelo Bielsa's West Ham United press conference and what questions will Leeds United boss face?

Marcelo Bielsa will sit down with the media this afternoon to preview Leeds United's Premier League visit to West Ham United.
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The Argentine and his men return to the London Stadium a week after their FA Cup defeat at the same venue to the same opposition but there's still plenty to talk about ahead of this one at Bielsa's press conference.

Here's what you need to know.

When

Today at 12pm Bielsa will join a Zoom call with the local and national press. The YEP's live blog will be running for updates. With the game on Sunday, it's likely there will be an embargoed section of the press conference which will be released late on Saturday night.

The agenda

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Injuries - There's no getting away from it, not when there's a possible list of 12 players missing for such an important Premier League game. Kalvin Phillips and Liam Cooper are the long-term absentees but Bielsa will be expected to deliver updates on those with any sort of chance of appearing this weekend. Patrick Bamford and Junior Firpo are the two you would think are most likely to be involved, the latter having declared himself fine in a mid-week interview but the open-ended nature of Rodrigo and Pascal Struijk's absences will lead to questions over possible returns at West Ham. The newest injury is Sam Greenwood, who revealed on social media this week that he picked up a knock in the FA Cup last week.

Young guns - Will Lewis Bate or Leo Hjelde get a second go in the first team after their FA Cup appearances?

BIG JOB - Leeds United Under 23s defender Leo Hjelde was called up to the first team for last week's trip to West Ham United. Pic: GettyBIG JOB - Leeds United Under 23s defender Leo Hjelde was called up to the first team for last week's trip to West Ham United. Pic: Getty
BIG JOB - Leeds United Under 23s defender Leo Hjelde was called up to the first team for last week's trip to West Ham United. Pic: Getty

Signings - His answer will be the same, but you can bet someone will have a question about the club's potential January recruitment.

Cody Drameh - The right-back left the club this week for a loan spell at Cardiff City, despite Leeds being down to the bare bones. Bielsa will be asked for some clarity on the club's reasoning at a time when they don't appear to have the luxury of letting players leave.

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Michail Antonio - How do you solve a problem like Antonio? He's been a problem for Leeds this season, even if the young debutants Bielsa has tasked with marking him have done themselves proud. First it was Charlie Cresswell, then it was Leo Hjelde. Who will try to keep him quiet this weekend and how will they go about it?

Expect to hear

"I prefer to talk about signings when they happen."

Don't expect to hear

"Fingers crossed there are no utterly baffling VAR decisions this time round."

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