Leeds United boss Daniel Farke has been urged to “roll the dice” and start exiled forward Joel Piroe in their next Premier League game.
Daniel Farke is under significant pressure at Leeds, having overseen a run of four defeats in their last five Premier League games.
Although Leeds’ defence has been leaky in that run, the majority of Farke’s issues stem from his side’s toothless attack, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin struggling for goals so far this season.
Lukas Nmecha stepped in and scored against Forest, but he did not offer the same all-round contribution as Calvert-Lewin in the Whites’ tame surrender in the East Midlands.
Now, Farke has been told that he needs to turn to exiled forward Joel Piroe, as he looks to turn Leeds’ faltering season around.
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty ImagesDaniel Farke urged to recall Joel Piroe for Leeds United
Joel Piroe has been a peripheral figure for Leeds this season, having been consigned mainly to a role on the bench following Calvert-Lewin’s arrival.
However, speaking on TalkSport Breakfast on the morning of 17th November, host Jeff Stelling urged Farke to give Piroe an opportunity, as Leeds continue to struggle for goals.
Stelling said: “Leeds fans will tell me why, I’m sure, but I don’t really understand why Joel Piroe got a hell of a load of goals in the championship, and he may be a championship player, I don’t know.
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“But he’s played 44 minutes since August in a side who are short of goals. You would have thought maybe it was time to roll the dice with him.”
However, co-host Gabby Agbonlahor countered: “Do you think sometimes, you can’t have a striker coming in one game.
“It’s not working in this game. 60 minutes they’re off, and then another striker in the next game.
“I played as a centre forward. Give the strikers three or four games. Give them a chance. First game, all right, didn’t work. All right, I’m gonna stick with you next game. Not changing between all three strikers.
“Calvert-Lewin, we know what Calvert-Lewin’s like. He needs to keep playing games. He needs 90 minutes. Not start one game, you haven’t scored, you’re off. Next game, you’re on for 10 minutes.
“So he needs to figure out which one out of the three is his best striker, and give them a run of games.”
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty ImagesStats show how limited Joel Piroe’s chances have been in the Premier League
Piroe was undoubtedly Leeds’ main striker in the Championship last season, scoring 19 goals for the Whites after seeing off an early-season challenge from Mateo Joseph.
However, he has found his chances limited this season, playing just 180 minutes in total across Leeds’ 11 Premier League games this season, at an average of just over 16 minutes per game, according to FotMob.
By contrast, Piroe played 3,090 minutes for Leeds in the Championship last season, just over 67 minutes per game across the 46 games.
Piroe has not started a game since the 5-0 defeat against Arsenal in May. With Leeds linked with Ireland hero Troy Parrott in the January window, he needs to find his way back into the starting side, or he risks being sold.