Leeds have been the early pace-setters in the Championship this season, and many supporters will be confident that Marcelo Bielsa is the man to take them back into the top flight. 

They are currently sat top of the table heading into the New Year, but will need to bounce back after a shock 2-0 home defeat to Hull City at the weekend.

One man who has come under fire for his recent performances is winger Jack Harrison, who has struggled in his loan spell with the Whites so far.

He was substituted for Jack Clarke at half-time against Hull, and it's not the first time that this has happened in this year's campaign.

But Bielsa was full of praise for the Manchester City loanee in an interview with the Yorkshire Evening Post, and insisted it was the right decision to start him ahead of Clarke.

"In the the first half Jack Harrison did good things and I think it’s good that he shares the game with Jack Clarke.

"The performance of Harrison is the performance of a starter."

But the Leeds boss also hinted at making a possible mistake in starting Harrison over Clarke in the defeat to the Tigers at the weekend, with Clarke impressing in his substitute appearance.

"Sometimes I look at the features and weaknesses of the opponent and I think about the skills of Jack Clarke and Jack Harrison. Then I take decisions. It doesn’t mean I always take the right decision but these are the aspects I take into account."

Leeds face their toughest challenge of this season on New Year's Day as they travel to the City Ground to face Nottingham Forest, in what will be a fiercely contested battle between the two promotion chasing sides.

The Verdict:

I don't understand why Bielsa persists with starting Harrison.

He evidently isn't performing up to the standard required if Bielsa is substituting him half-way through games, so it's pointless starting him in the first place.

All he's doing, is harming the development of arguably, the most exciting young talent in the Championship in Jack Clarke, and Bielsa simply must give the youngster a chance in the New Year.