Rodrigo Moreno made his first Leeds United start since returning from injury yesterday, completing 90 minutes as Marcelo Bielsa’s side fell to a 1-0 defeat against Newcastle United.
Leeds were beaten by a late Jonjo Shelvey free-kick, resulting in a frustrating loss.
There were plenty of mixed performers within the Leeds ranks, with Jack Harrison particularly impressive, whilst others underwhelmed with their time spent on the field.
Rodrigo was a player that drifted in and out of the game.
The first-half was full of the 30-year-old breaking lines and creating width for Harrison and Raphinha to exploit. However, the second-half saw Rodrigo become slacker in possession and fade as he fatigued – that’s to be expected after a long time out of action with a heel problem.
Over on Twitter, there was plenty of debate about what the forward showed, with fans torn:
Rodrigo was excellent in the first-half yesterday, linking well with Harrison and Raphinha, providing the perfect balance with Mateusz Klich in-behind Dan James.
There were some lovely touches and the vision Rodrigo showed was equally impressive. He contributed to a first-half where Leeds were lacking one thing: a finishing touch.
Rodrigo couldn’t provide that and the second-half was very different.
That wasn’t just Rodrigo, though, there was a real shift in the game after half-time. It became stretched and Leeds lost the control they’d built in the first-half.
Rodrigo began to fade as he fatigued and, you’d imagine, with a few weeks more to get himself fit, he will have a more sustained impact in games.
If the first-half is anything to go by, that’s an exciting prospect.
