Kalvin Phillips' Leeds United absence is a shame, Kiko Casilla's presence would be a distraction

“Every match in this period is very important, we pay for every distraction so we need to keep focus,” said Marcelo Bielsa after the win at Blackburn Rovers.
SHAME - Kalvin Phillips has been robbed of the final three games of Leeds United's promotion chase by a knee injurySHAME - Kalvin Phillips has been robbed of the final three games of Leeds United's promotion chase by a knee injury
SHAME - Kalvin Phillips has been robbed of the final three games of Leeds United's promotion chase by a knee injury

Since then, the Whites have battered Stoke City and grabbed an 89th-minute winner at Swansea, handling the mounting pressure and moving closer and closer to their goal.

That victory in Wales has put them on the cusp, piling the pressure back on Brentford who now have to win against Preston tonight. If the Bees can’t win that game, then Leeds can cross the finish line with victory over Barnsley.

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It felt like a significant moment in the promotion race, when Pablo Hernandez struck the winner on his old stomping ground, breaking a stubborn Swans resistance.

The subsequent scenes, substitutes sprinting to celebrate, staff wrapping arms around one another, and the sight of Leeds players sinking to the turf in joy and relief at full-time, told you everything about just how important the Whites considered that game.

Two days later, Bielsa went on record to assure everyone that those celebrations soon subsided.

“The happiness after a win with a goal in the last minute is very visible for everyone,” he said.

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“This happiness lasts just a short time. As the hours progress, everything is normal again.”

FORM - Illan Meslier has been in good form for Leeds United during Kiko Casilla's absence, showing no signs of being anything other than perfectly adequateFORM - Illan Meslier has been in good form for Leeds United during Kiko Casilla's absence, showing no signs of being anything other than perfectly adequate
FORM - Illan Meslier has been in good form for Leeds United during Kiko Casilla's absence, showing no signs of being anything other than perfectly adequate

Yet all is not quite normal. Is it ever, at Leeds United?

The ominous strapping around Kalvin Phillips’ left leg for the second half at Swansea and the knee bandage he was wearing when pictured on Monday outside Greggs with a supporter has introduced the first cloud to what was a sunny horizon. Phillips has a knee injury that will keep him out for up to five weeks.

Whether or not Leeds will need him to dispatch bottom side Barnsley is one thing, his absence from the pitch in a game that could seal promotion, or for the trip to Derby should the promotion race carry on into the weekend, is a devastating blow for the player and the fans. He deserves to be in the team that gets Leeds over the line and ends the 16 years of hurt.

Phillips is Leeds through and through. He is also one of Bielsa’s best players, even if he hasn’t been at his best for every game since the restart, and his presence doesn’t just repel opposition attacks, it repels doubt in the fanbase.

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Bielsa revealed that, as expected, Ben White is the player he is thinking of moving into midfield, which will likely bring Gaetano Berardi into the back four. White is so good at football and Berardi has been so solid this season that what could have been a major distraction may just turn out to be an unfortunate inconvenience and a shame. It was the other piece of team news, or lack thereof, that threatens to pull focus this week.

Bielsa, reknowned for all-too-happily telling the press and therefore opponents the names of the players who will feature on his teamsheet, was unusually coy when the conversation turned to goalkeeping. Kiko Casilla is available for selection once again after sitting out the eight-game ban he received for racism. The Spaniard has trained with Leeds throughout this period, Bielsa says.

What Bielsa wouldn’t say, was whether or not he will stick with Illan Meslier, the 20-year-old loanee who has, to the untrained eye, showed no signs of being anything other than perfectly adequate in the position. He has, for large parts of his eight games, been well protected but has also been worth his five clean sheets. Bielsa preferred to tell his players what he has decided, before making a public statement on the matter.

That, naturally, raises concerns for those keen to see Meslier remain in place.

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Casilla, simply put, is a walking distraction. His name has been divisive for Leeds fans ever since an accustation of racism was made and his defence of supposedly never having heard the n-word would have been laughable, had the entire episode not been so depressing.

Second guessing Bielsa is never advisable, yet the inclusion of Casilla in a Leeds squad at a time when the fight against racism is ramping up, on and off the football pitch, would be a shock to all, a disappointment to many and an unwelcome distraction, for which they would pay.

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