Pundit Anton Ferdinand has said that Leeds United boss Sam Allardyce will have to work on Junior Firpo’s defending in training.
Ferdinand was providing coverage of Allardyce’s return to managerial action yesterday on Soccer Saturday.
Leeds couldn’t cope with Ilkay Gundogan as his first-half brace earned the league leaders three points.
The visitors made it interesting in the final few minutes, with top scorer Rodrigo Moreno grabbing a goal against the run of play.
It made for a nervy end to the game for the hosts, and they were time-wasting in added time.
Manchester City have the most frightening attack in the Premier League if not world football.
They’ve blown teams away this season, but Sam Allardyce’s impact was immediately obvious as Leeds set up in a very compact shape.
However, Ferdinand wasn’t impressed with Leeds defender Junior Firpo and thinks Allardyce has his work cut out with the left-back.
He didn’t get tight enough to Riyad Mahrez throughout the match, and he was the source of both goals.
Leeds boss Allardyce needs to work with Firpo – Ferdinand
Ferdinand was asked if the new Leeds boss would care that his side didn’t have much of the ball, and he replied: “No, he doesn’t.
“But what he will care about is when you’re one-v-one with someone, are you touch tight, are you tight enough?
“Sometimes, when the ball’s been wide, Leeds’s full-backs haven’t been close enough to the attacking players, which is why both of [Ilkay] Gundogan’s goals have come from [Riyad] Mahrez.
“The left-back [Firpo] hasn’t been tight enough to him. I’m not being funny, but when you are a left-back, it’s common sense, you’re taught it.
“If you’re playing against a left-footer on the right-hand side, you stand on their left foot, so they have to go to the line.
“But you can’t do that if you’re five yards off them, it’s impossible. They now dictate to you. That’s one thing that Sam Allardyce I’d like to think he would identify that [with Firpo] and nullify that on the [Leeds] training pitch.”
Time running out at Elland Road
The £13m defender has had an injury-disrupted season and has only managed 17 appearances this season.
He featured in both drubbings at Elland Road against Crystal Palace and Liverpool before Javi Gracia was sacked.
Firpo has already shared what Allardyce has changed in Leeds training since his arrival.
He’ll have to do better on the training ground to retain his place in the starting line-up.
With just three games to go, they need to turn their form around now to avoid being relegated.