Leeds United men get international chance as Whites target shines and Struijk obstacles revealed

Rasmus Kristensen and Mateusz Klich were both named on the bench for Denmark and Poland respectively as Denmark took on Croatia in Zagreb and Poland faced the Netherlands in Warsaw.

Loaned out Leeds players Dan James and Tyler Roberts were also part of the Wales squad that played Belgium in Brussels.

James started and played the full match for Wales who fell to a 2-1 defeat in a contest to which Roberts was introduced from the bench with six minutes left.

However, it was a player that Leeds tried to sign in the summer that took centre stage in the Poland versus Netherlands fixture as PSV Eindhoven’s Cody Gakpo bagged the opening goal of the game in a 2-0 victory.

Whites director of football Victor Orta flew out to Eindhoven the day before transfer deadline day in pursuit of 23-year-old attacker Gakpo who lined up just behind front pair Steven Bergwijn and Memphis Depay in Thursday evening’s Nations League clash.

As part of a beautiful move from the Dutch, Gakpo darted beyond the Polish back line in the 13th minute to leave himself with a simple tap-in to convert a Denzel Dumfries cross from the right flank.

Leeds defender Pascal Struijk was initially part of the bigger provisional Netherlands squad for this month’s Nations League games upon being handed a first international call up by boss Louis van Gaal.

But Struijk did not make the final squad and van Gaal went with a back three of captain and Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk, Manchester City’s Nathan Ake and Ajax ace Jurrien Timber against the Poles.

Ajax’s Daley Blind played as a left wing back with Inter Milan’s Dumfries on the other side.

Klich was finally brought on in the 70th minute for Poland, at which point his side were already 2-0 down.

Kristensen was introduced on the hour mark for Denmark who were beaten 2-1 in Croatia.