Daniel Farke will once again have a number of decisions to make to his Leeds United starting XI when The Whites welcome Coventry City to Elland Road this weekend.
Leeds come into the game off the back of three wins in their last four, having bounced back from defeat to Burnley, to beat Cardiff away. The Whites have let in one goal in their last five Championship games.
Coventry meanwhile, have made a poor start to the Championship campaign. One win from six league games and are winless in four games including the late 2-1 defeat to Archie Gray’s Tottenham last week.
Leeds then, will be expected to win against Mark Robins’ FA Cup semi-finalists on Saturday, especially with home advantage. But it is a side that took five points off Daniel Farke’s side during the 2023-24 campaign.
Farke will be well aware of the threat of the likes of Ellis Simms and Haji Wright in Coventry’s attack and he must pick his strongest side if Leeds are to walk away with three points – one change is a no-brainer.
Joel Piroe’s career record against Coventry surely sees him start
Piroe is riding cloud nine at the moment after scoring three minutes into his six-minute cameo role last time out, finished superbly to score Leeds’ second in a 2-0 win over Cardiff City away from home.
Speaking before the match, Farke described Piroe as the best finisher in the Championship and despite starting one league game this season, Piroe is joint top goalscorer for Farke’s side with two league goals.
But his form against Coventry throughout his career should convince Farke to start him. Facing Robins’ side on seven occasions for Swansea and Leeds, Piroe has three goals and only lost on one occasion.
Where could Daniel Farke use Piroe on Saturday afternoon?
Piroe is capable of two positions. The “phenomenal” star is naturally a striker, but can play as a 10 however, Leeds fans have criticised the Dutchman when playing as an attacking midfielder for Leeds.
| Piroe appearance v Coventry | Goals | Minutes | Result |
| November 2, 2021 for Swansea | 1 | 73 | 2-1 W |
| March 5, 2022 for Swansea | 0 | 90 | 3-1 W |
| December 17, 2022 for Swansea | 1 | 90 | 3-3 D |
| April 7, 2023 for Swansea | 0 | 90 | 0-0 D |
| August 19, 2023 for Swansea | 0 | 90 | 1-1 D |
| December 16, 2023 for Leeds | 0 | 85 | 1-1 D |
| April 6, 2024 for Leeds | 1 | 24 | 2-1 L |
If Farke is to start £16m Piroe then it must be in place of Mateo Joseph. A bold call, but the Spain U21 talent has only managed one goal in six Championship starts so far. Joseph though, has laid on three assists.
It will be interesting to see what Farke does come Saturday but Piroe is in good form, morale will be high and his record against Coventry is impressive. He has to find a way to include Piroe in his starting XI.
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