Leeds United man praises Elland Road dressing room's unsung hero and addresses significant summer shift
Leeds United forward Dan James misses out on this month's international fixtures for Wales with a hamstring injury but backs clubmates to get off on the right foot with new boss Craig Bellamy.
Former Manchester City and Newcastle United attacker Bellamy was appointed national team head coach following the departure of Rob Page earlier this year and has, unsurprisingly, selected a number of Leeds players in his first squad.
James was initially named in Bellamy's inaugural group but has been forced to withdraw due to a hamstring issue and will instead join up with the Wales group during next month's international break, injuries permitting.
The winger has already hit the back of the net for Leeds this season, doubling United's advantage away at Sheffield Wednesday last month, but sat out the 2-0 victory against Hull City over the weekend.
Joe Rodon and Ethan Ampadu will likely start in Wales' two fixtures this month, versus Turkey and Montenegro in UEFA Nations League action, while there has also been a call-up for back-up Leeds goalkeeper Karl Darlow.
“Karl’s a great friend of mine but I only found out recently that he was qualified to play for Wales.
“He’s a great goalkeeper who has played a lot of first-team games.
“We’re a young team and Karl’s experience will be good for us going into the competitions we’ve got coming up," James told PA Sport, suggesting the 33-year-old's participation in hundreds of games and presence in lots of dressing rooms is also helpful off the pitch for Leeds' particularly young side.
As for Ampadu, who was named Leeds club captain following the departure of Liam Cooper after several years as skipper, James said: “Ethan just takes everything in his stride."
“The way he carries himself on and off the pitch is unbelievable. He’s naturally a captain at heart.”
James' hamstring injury is not thought to be serious and may well be in contention to return to Daniel Farke's starting line-up when Leeds host Burnley on Saturday, September 14.