Leeds: Jesse Marsch 'big miss' after blow for £13m Elland Road star

Junior Firpo’s absence will be a “big miss” for Leeds, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

The left-back, who signed from Barcelona for £13m last summer, suffered a knee injury against Aston Villa earlier this month and is facing a spell on the sidelines.

It’s been a stop-start first campaign in English football for the Brazilian, who’s made 15 starts in the Premier League, but has missed 10 league games with various injuries.

Firpo has been fit recently, though, and started five games in a row in January and February, until he suffered his latest setback late on against Villa.

Following a tackle with Emiliano Buendia, Firpo was stretchered off and given oxygen having spent several minutes on the ground after the incident.

Keeping in line with Leeds’ wretched injury record throughout this season, journalist Phil Hay revealed that the defender is likely to spend a number of weeks on the treatment table.

Meanwhile, Jesse Marsch said: “We don’t know yet but it’s probably something on the inside of his knee like an MCL [medial collateral ligament] so we’ll evaluate that and see where he’s at.”

With Leeds not exactly blessed with left-backs, Jones reckons that Firpo’s injury is going to be a major blow in the weeks ahead.

When asked how damaging his absence could be, Jones told GIVEMESPORT: “He’ll be a big miss, he’s their only left-back, they don’t have any other obvious candidates to fill that gap.”

As Jones mentioned , Firpo is Leeds’ only senior left-back, with Ezgjan Alioski sold last summer.

Fortunately for the Yorkshire giants, in Stuart Dallas, they have someone who’s capable of covering in a number of different positions across the pitch; one being at left-back.

Dallas has played there more than 50 times in his