How have Leeds United stars fared during the international break?
The first international break of the season is finally over and Leeds United will now focus their attention on their return to Premier League action this weekend.
The Whites will visit Fulham on Saturday on Saturday afternoon and will hope to build on what has been a solid start to the season after they collected four points from their opening three games of the league campaign. An opening night home win against Everton offered a positive start to the season - but there was disappointment as Daniel Farke’s men crashed to a heavy defeat at title contenders Arsenal.
The final game before the international break brought a goalless draw with a Newcastle United side preparing to face the likes of Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain in this season’s Champions League. That game was the last before Farke waved goodbye to a number of his players as they prepared to meet up with their international squads as countries across Europe prepared for the latest step in their attempts to qualifying for next summer’s World Cup finals in North America.
But how did the Whites international contigent fare over the last week.
Karl Darlow and Dan James (Wales)
Friday, June 6: Wales v Liechtenstein - World Cup qualifier - 7.45pm.
Monday, June 9: Belgium v Wales - World Cup qualifier - 7.45pm.placeholder image
Friday, June 6: Wales v Liechtenstein - World Cup qualifier - 7.45pm. Monday, June 9: Belgium v Wales - World Cup qualifier - 7.45pm. | Getty Images
Goalkeeper Darlow earned his eighth Wales cap with a start in their 1-0 win in Kazakhstan on Friday. James came off the bench to replace Brennan Johnson during the second half in Astana but then was handed a start in a 1-0 friendly defeat against Canada on Tuesday. Darlow remained on the bench for that loss.
Jaka Bijol (Slovenia)
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Getty Images
The Whites summer signing appeared for the entire 90 of both of Slovenia’s World Cup qualifiers over the last week. The defender produced a solid display as his side battled to a 2-2 home draw with Sweden but emerged on the wrong side of the result in Monday’s visit to Switzerland as the hosts eased to a 3-0 win.
Gabriel Gudmundsson (Sweden)
Gabriel Gudmundsson in action for Sweden.placeholder image
Gabriel Gudmundsson in action for Sweden. | AFP via Getty Images
The defender has enjoyed a positive start to life with the Whites after joining from Lille during the summer. However, there was some criticism of his performance in Monday’s 2-0 defeat against Kosovo. After playing the entire 90 minutes in a 2-2 draw with Jaka Bijol’s Slovenia, Gudmundsson was unable to prevent his side from falling to a defeat in their latest World Cup qualifier.
Swedish news outlet Fotbollskanalen said: “Some weak passes that led to dangerous counterattacks. [He] lost the ball. Not nearly as strong as before in the national team, and was outplayed several times. Did not contribute offensively.”
Ilia Gruev (Bulgaria)
SETBACK: For Bulgaria and Leeds United midfielder Ilia Gruev, top.placeholder image
SETBACK: For Bulgaria and Leeds United midfielder Ilia Gruev, top. | AFP via Getty Images
It was a disappointing international break for Gruev’s Bulgaria as they fell to a pair of 3-0 defeats in World Cup qualifiers with Spain and Georgia. Gruev played the entire 90 minutes of the loss against the Spanish and came on as a half-time substitute in Sunday’s defeat in Georgia. However, it is the midfielder’s fitness that has been the main talking point over the last week.
"Before, there were four days between matches, now there are three days plus travel,” Bulgaria head coach Illian Iliev told Palms Sport. “Ilia Gruev had problems, it was questionable whether to start or come in as a substitute. He came in and coped, I hope there are no consequences from the fact that he played with problems.”
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