Leeds – Villa; A foregone conclusion

It’s been a very strange season up to now and trying to predict results has proved immensely difficult to say the least.
Victories and losses which should have been fairly straightforward on paper, have often proven to be wrong.

That said, I’m looking at this game with as much conviction as any this season.
And quite simply, I think we’re going to get beaten. Soundly.

Squad news first.
Lets look at the injuries.
Matt Cash is back on grass running. That’s great, as he’s being missed.
Hause is due back on grass in the next week or so.
Wesley might get back to contact training in the next week or two. Does that mean he’s already on the grass?
I’d imagine so. But he hasn’t played in 14 months. I’ll stand by my prediction that he’ll be lucky to get much of a sniff this season.
And the big news is Grealish, who definitely will not be available for this game.
Dean Smith is being a little more coy this week, but he’s also gone on the defensive.
Let’s have a look at what he said in the press conference;

“He’s getting better. He won’t be ready for tomorrow but he’s getting better.

“I was very vague last week because it’s a bit of a strange injury. Jack could be back to play against Sheffield United next Wednesday or Wolves next week. We’ll be led by Jack on that.”

Now, this annoys me.
It seems to me there has been a lot of talk amongst the fans that this is not going to be a brief injury and it’s going to last for several games.
Of course, it’s speculation on the fans’ part, but it seems to me that the speculation has been more accurate than Smith up to now.
Note that comment that the doctor doesn’t know.
If the doctor doesn’t know, how on earth could Smith say that Grealish would be back for this game?

My going on about this may seem petty, but I find it massively irritating.
Dean Smith should quite simply have told the truth and said he doesn’t know what the issue is, hence he can’t say.

My money says it is indeed shin splints and Jack could easily be back next week or out for the next six games.
Why not just say that? It avoids the disappointment that many of us are probably feeling about his not being available.
And for what it’s worth, I’d rather see Jack out for a few games if it means he comes back in tip top condition, as opposed to being rushed back and not being up to his best.
I’m sure most would agree with that too, so stop treating us as fools Dean!

As for Leeds, midfielder Mateusz Klich is an injury doubt while Rodrigo and Kalvin Phillips are out. It’s just precautionary with Phillips because of a calf issue. Whatever, it’s good news for us.
Robin Koch is not expected back to training until next week.

Back to the game.
I’m very confident that we’re not going to win this one, but it’s not as though Leeds are some sort of wonder team.
In fact they’re far from it and their form is just like my wallet lately (there’s nowt in it).

A look at the league table is quite a surprise.
Both teams have won six games away and won five at home.
We’ve drawn three games and Leeds have drawn two. Guess which result I definitely won’t be going for?
Even our current form over the last five games is pretty similar, which actually does give me some hope, considering how poor I think we’ve been for a fair few games now.

We also have to consider that Leeds are a point behind us, having played two games more.
That’ll probably change tomorrow, but Leeds are by no means as good as the media have painted them to be.
If we’d listened to them. Leeds would have romped this league.
I have nothing against Leeds but the fact that they’re as average as us pleases me immensely.
Yes, they play nice footy, but the way they’ve been hyped makes me puke, just as much as it does with the “big six”.

Anyway, why do I think we’ll lose?
It’s easy. Leeds worked us to death at home and we just couldn’t live with it.
That performance against us was the best I’ve seen this season.
And when you consider how horrendously poor our midfield has been over the last few games, well, it doesn’t bode well.
Then consider we won’t have Jack to hold the ball, or slow things down, or give us his vision and I can only see things going one way.

I’m saying it with fingers crossed, but I fully expect another 3-0 defeat.

Let’s hope I’m as wrong as I have been for most of this season, eh?

UTV!