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Delight at Leeds United as £5million ace continues to impress – Our View

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Leeds United midfielder Darko Gyabi made his second senior start last weekend as he featured in the FA Cup draw against Cardiff City, and did well in the process.

A trip to South Wales in the FA Cup gave Jesse Marsch another chance to offer more game time to key youngsters who haven’t had frequent chances in the Premier League.

Darko Gyabi was one of those handed a start, the third of his senior career after making his debut back in November against Wolves in the League Cup.

The £5million signing from Manchester City managed just under an hour before being subbed off for new signing Max Wöber, and despite heading off with the score 2-0 to the hosts, Gyabi can be proud of his contribution.

Here, our writers Kris (FA5) and Alfie (N12) look at how the youngster fared on his FA Cup debut…

We do have a potential star on our hands in Gyabi, and his commanding of the midfield was perhaps the only thing that went right for Leeds in the first hour of the game.

This setup under Marsch means Leeds very rarely sustain constant attacks, but Gyabi went against that grain, recovering the ball very well and moving it forward quickly when he got the chance.

You can see right away from only three senior outings that he is physically capable of playing in a Premier League side, and he has the intelligence to control the midfield as part of a double pivot, playing off either side just as well with his passing on both feet great.

The sub to take him off seemed odd at the time when he was hooked for Wöber, but perhaps Leeds needed fresh legs, which isn’t a bad mark against him.

Out of the players who played at Cardiff, very few starters came out of the game with credit, but he was one of them who did.

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He started well and looks more comfortable on the first-team stage with every appearance.

The midfielder is strong, has good feet and looks like he will eventually be robust enough for the Premier League.

One concern is that he did fade in the game and look tired. Yet, you’ve got to expect that will happen when it comes to a player that’s played so much football at youth level and is very much finding his feet in Leeds’ senior setup.

Overall, it was another solid step in the right direction and the best thing you can probably say is that you wouldn’t be against seeing him play more minutes in 2023.

Quiz: Can you remember Leeds United’s last 16 results v Aston Villa ahead of Premier League clash?

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Elland Road 2022/23

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Leeds United season ticket holder since 2013/14, currently situated in the middle of the FA5 noise. From Pablo Hernandez to 5-1 drubbings, I've seen it all at Elland Road.