Patrick Bamford now says whether he could be fit for Leeds United’s play-off final against Southampton

The 30-year-old picked up a knock on his knee almost a month ago in Leeds’ 4-3 win at Middlesbrough, which initially appeared to be just bruising as opposed to a proper injury.

Daniel Farke had even given him a chance to return for the 4-0 defeat at Queens Park Rangers, although that was clearly before he knew the true extent of the injury.

Given what is at stake, Bamford will be keen to return to action ahead of the final but is still looking to do his bit off the pitch, giving Georginio Rutter a one-on-one talk ahead of Thursday’s win.

Bamford says if he could reach Leeds play-off final

Bamford was one of three players absent from the squad against Norwich, with Pascal Struijk missing the last five months and Sam Byram a late omission.

Struijk has already been ruled out for the season, but for both Bamford and Byram, they will be doing their best to get back fit.

With the clock ticking on the chances of them being involved, Bamford gave a personal injury update on the latest episode of ‘My Mate’s A Footballer Podcast’.

He says at this stage it remains “touch and go” if he will return and has given him a timeline of when he needs to start training to be in the squad.

He said: “So the simple answer is no (if he knows where the injury is). It’s touch and go, in these 10 days, realistically, if I want to be involved in the final, I’ll have to train with the team at some point next week.

“Against Middlesbrough I don’t remember doing it. It was a kick where I was limping, after which they think it happened. Cry had a hit and I sneaked in to try to touch him at the back post, and I don’t know what happened and somehow I managed to hit my knee, or twist it or something.

“Two minutes later, when I started running on the field, it hurt more and more. The manager took me out five minutes later so I thought ok, I’ll be fine, I just hit him. Then the next day, I was in agony thinking, what’s going on?

“I got on the bench and iced it and thought it would go away the next day, but it got worse. It’s hard to explain what it is, but it has something to do with the patella tendon and where the bone attaches. It’s touch and go for the finale.

“Realistically, because it’s been three weeks since I last played, I’ve got to train, with the final on Sunday, until Wednesday to train for a couple of days, because otherwise there’s no point in being there because I’m not going to be sharp.”

Bamford does not appear to be hoping to return to the Leeds final

Bamford’s return to the team would be huge for the final, given what he can offer off the ball against a Southampton side who will be looking to play from the back.

However, it has to be said that he doesn’t seem too confident in his chances of succeeding. The next few days seem to be crucial.

The final is more than a week away, but as he said, if he can’t return to training by Wednesday, his fitness will be on the field. In a big ground like Wembley, Leeds can’t afford any passengers.

Hopefully he can see an improvement in his condition in the next 48 – 72 hours so he can at least be a useful bench option if Leeds need him.

Similar topics