We did hope to see Tyler Roberts in action against Bristol City on Sunday, but his latest injury setback has turned out to be worse than originally thought.
The 19-year-old was signed from West Brom on deadline for an initial £2.5m (with the deal potentially rising to £4m) but he failed to make his debut at Sheffield United through injury. And now the club has announced he has suffered another problem which could keep him out for some time.
Many Leeds fans have taken to social media today to ask how he managed to pass his medical, but the statement on the official website suggests that it’s a new injury that he picked up in training this week. Initial scans show that Roberts has a small crack on his shin which will need further assessment and consultation with a specialist this week, before the club can provide an update on a timescale for his return to action.
Paul Heckingbottom said "This is disappointing news for all concerned, especially for Tyler. However, with the help of the experienced medical team at Thorp Arch, he will come back stronger than ever. We would love to have Tyler involved as soon as possible but, particularly with our younger players, the club has a duty of care to ensure we don’t rush these situations because we expect Tyler to be an important player for us for years to come.”
There had been suggestions that the Heck was thinking of a change in formation for Sunday, with Roberts playing up front alongside Lasogga in a 4-4-2 formation. I’ve thought for some time that we should try this, especially at home when we need to break the opposition down and our lone striker has got a bit isolated.
But if we are going to go to 4-4-2 against Bristol City it will now have to be Roofe or Ekuban playing alongside Lasogga.