The first half of the season may have gone according to plan for Leeds but January has seen them take worrying steps on and off the pitch and now their promotion hopes are in a precarious position.
Defeat to QPR means they have just one win in eight, with Fulham and Brentford both claiming points this weekend to reduce the gap to the Whites to four and five points respectively.
In terms of transfers, there is little good news to report either. Victor Orta has so far failed to add a striker to replace Eddie Nketiah following his recall by Arsenal, and that leaves Patrick Bamford as the sole senior striker at the club.
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He may be Leeds’ top scorer this season with 10 goals but he has also perhaps been the biggest target of criticism from supporters, and the hostility towards him only grew following his performance at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.
The former Middlesbrough player twice had a fantastic opportunity to level things up for the visitors. First, he did well to work an opening that put him through one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but he blasted high and wide with his weaker foot.
In the second half he also did well to get the ball away from the keeper and draw a penalty from the R’s shot-stopper, who then touched Bamford’s resulting spot-kick wide of the post.
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Those two examples epitomise the season Bamford has had. He often plays well in linking the play and working hard for the Whites, but when it comes to finding the target his shooting boots can often desert him – as his 3.4 shots per game indicate.
That is why Leeds fans are so enraged, with some appearing to have finally run out of patience. As a result, there have been calls for the 26-year-old to be dropped despite there being no obvious replacement, and that underlines the ill-feeling that exists towards him.
Meanwhile, Marcelo Bielsa has shared his vote of confidence for two key figures at the club, and fans have reacted to his comments in an interesting manner.