Leeds suffer crushing injury blow ahead of Liverpool and Spurs, Bielsa will be gutted - opinion

Leeds United have been handed another crushing injury setback ahead of their two Premier League fixtures this week…

The Yorkshire giants suffered another defensive disasterclass on Sunday as they were beaten by old rivals Manchester United in a six-goal thriller and the schedule isn’t getting any easier.

They head to Anfield to face second-placed Liverpool on Wednesday night before hosting Tottenham Hotspur at Elland Road on Saturday lunchtime, nearly a week after they defeated defending champions and table-toppers Manchester City.

And manager Marcelo Bielsa is expected to be without starting centre-back Robin Koch with a suspected concussion.

The 25-year-old was substituted in the 29th minute at the weekend with a suspected concussion, meaning he will now have to follow the Football Association’s protocols, in which Mail+ claim that players have to rest for a minimum of six games.

That would rule him out of both Premier League fixtures this week.

When it rains, it pours.

Whilst it was certainly hammering it with rain at Elland Road on Saturday, Leeds’ unrelenting injury problems don’t seem like easing up anytime soon.

Koch has been afforded a place in the starting XI largely due to the absence of club captain Liam Cooper, who has been absent since early December with a hamstring problem.

Now, Bielsa will be without another central defender for two big games against teams either in or around the hunt for a top-four finish, a stark contrast to the Whites’ season as they are on the cusp of being dragged into the relegation mire, sooner rather than later.

It has been the German’s best run of matches in a Leeds shirt since signing from Bundesliga outfit Freiburg in an £11.5m deal back in August 2020.

Indeed, the £15.3m-rated