This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
Leeds United are reportedly assessing striker Jean-Kevin Augustin after suffering an injury setback.
The Yorkshire Evening Post has reported that the Frenchman is being assessed by the Leeds medical team to discover whether this latest setback is a new injury or the reoccurrence of a previous issue.
With the Championship set to get back underway later this month, they're also hoping to discover whether or not Augustin will be able to play any further part.
If he isn't, Marcelo Bielsa will be left with just Patrick Bamford and Tyler Roberts to choose from, though he does have 19-year-old Ryan Edmondson in the U23s.
Should he look to Edmondson as an option if Augustin is out?
We asked our FLW writers for their thoughts...
Alfie Burns
If he’s fit, Edmondson should be in consideration given how intense the games are going to be when the Championship returns. However, we all know that Bielsa will overlook him.
Patrick Bamford is going to lead the line and Tyler Roberts will serve as his back-up if Augustin is missing for the remainder of the season.
It’s tough on Edmondson, who has scored goals consistently for Leeds’ youth teams, but Bielsa clearly doesn’t fancy thrusting him into the deep end in terms of the Championship’s promotion race.
His time will come, I’m sure, but these nine games don’t look like helping his prospects of first-team football.
George Dagless
Potentially.
There'd be no harm in getting him in and around the squad – especially given youth football is on hold at the moment.
He's a good young player with plenty of room to grow and he's certainly shown a willingness already to work hard and get himself a chance as soon as it presents itself.
I personally don't think Leeds will miss Augustin much – he didn't play all that often before the break and so he won't be a huge miss - but it could still make sense to have an extra striker in the squad, learning as much as possible.
Indeed, he's a different kind of forward to Bamford and Roberts, so sticking him on the bench at least has plenty going for it.
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Jacob Potter
I don't think he's the answer.
Edmondson hasn't had anywhere near enough game time with Leeds this season, and I was surprised the club didn't loan him out in the transfer window.
He's still a young talent that could benefit from regular game time in senior football. It's far too early for him to be thrown into the Leeds senior team on a regular basis, and I think the likes of Tyler Roberts are going to be streaks ahead of him in terms of first-team chances.
Augustin's injury blow will be hugely frustrating for the Elland Road faithful, but they should have good enough options in Roberts and Bamford to get over the line in the race for promotion into the Premier League this term.