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Javi Gracia names which four Leeds United players he is considering to cover Tyler Adams injury blow

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Leeds United manager Javi Gracia is going to have to cope without Tyler Adams this weekend for the trip to Wolves, but is confident his options are plentiful without him.

Leeds’ injury issues may have eased up of late, but they have suffered a major blow ahead of a vital clash against Wolves this Saturday.

Gracia is going to be forced into midfield changes as his side heads to Molineux in a must-win game.

Leeds injury news

Tyler Adams headlines the latest team news for Leeds, with the USMNT skipper confirmed to be out for not only the Wolves clash, but also the international break with a hamstring problem.

The timescale of his setback is yet to be confirmed, leaving it unclear whether he will be ready for the trip to Arsenal at the start of April, after the international break.

How could Gracia cope with losing Adams?

Without Adams in the squad for this weekend, it’s expected that Leeds and Gracia will line up with a double pivot of Marc Roca and Weston McKennie, a pairing that we’re yet to see from the start of a game this season.

Speaking about coping with the loss of Adams in his pre-match press conference, Gracia said this:

“As you can see in the last games we played, we started with Tyler and Marc. The game before, Tyler and Weston. We have other players waiting for their chance – maybe this is their moment. I’m sure all of them are ready to compete at a high level.”

When asked specifically about Darko Gyabi’s chances of being part of the covering group for Adams, Gracia added:

“Darko is one option, the same way all the other young players are as well, Archie (Gray) – these are the players that are useful in training for us in that position.

“Marc, Weston, Darko, Archie are the players that usually train in that position in midfield, and we’ll have to take the decision for the next game about the best option.”

Wolves v Leeds predictions?

Wolves win

Wolves win

Draw

Draw

Leeds win

Leeds win

It would be intriguing to see if Gracia trusts either Gyabi or Gray to play in games like this against relegation rivals, and I’m not sure it’s fair to throw them in at the deep end.

They have the quality to impact this current Leeds side, but in Roca and McKennie, you have Champions League experience and real quality with the ball.

You have to wonder how long it will be before we see Gyabi handed starts in the Premier League, because you can see Gracia rates him and Gray.

Quiz: Can you remember Leeds United’s last 15 results v Wolves ahead of Molineux trip?

1 of 15

November 2022, Molineux (EFL Cup)?

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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.