Leeds United's Rodrigo prepared for 'intense' Elland Road showdown with West Ham

The Whites' take on the Hammers in the top flight on Friday night.
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Rodrigo is expecting a tough and intense Premier League test when Leeds United host West Ham at Elland Road this evening.

Marcelo Bielsa's side fell to a 3-1 defeat at Chelsea last time out with the visiting Hammers beaten by the same scoreline against Manchester United.

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David Moyes' outfit have made an impressive start to the top flight campaign, winning five out of their 11 fixtures so far to leave themselves eighth in the table.

Leeds United forward Rodrigo. Pic: GettyLeeds United forward Rodrigo. Pic: Getty
Leeds United forward Rodrigo. Pic: Getty

Bielsa's men are 14th ahead of the busy festive period but are just three points behind the Hammers following promotion from the Championship last term.

United are set to recall Rodrigo to their starting line-up after Bielsa took the step of revealing his team during his pre-match press conference.

The Whites' have been hit by a double defensive blow in the form of Robin Koch and Diego Llorente, which will see Luke Ayling partner club captain Liam Cooper in central defence.

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Stuart Dallas will move from midfielder to right-back, opening up a spot for Rodrigo to come in.

"It will be a tough game," Rodrigo admitted ahead of his first start for seven weeks.

"We can see in the 11 games that we have already played that we didn't have an easy game, a calm game.

"We are in a good way. I think we have proved to ourselves and other teams also that we are able.

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"We have the capacity to face every team and win. It will be a tough game with a lot of intensity, as always with the Premier League.

"With our style we will try to have the ball and be offensive. We will play with a lot of intensity and try to find the goal.

"I think it will be a great game again. We are focused on the next game and will forget about the last one [against Chelsea].

"We just want to do our best and to win the game."

Asked how the squad was feeling following a disappointing result last time out, he said: "The squad wasn't happy with the defeat. We work hard every day in Thorp Arch to try to win every game.

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"We know they [Chelsea] have a very good team. They signed some very good players last summer. They are probably one of the teams who will fight for the title this season.

"We know that we are in a high level, every small detail makes a difference in the game. I think we have a strong and experience group.

"We want to prepare ourselves even better for the next game on Friday."