'Doesn't look great' - Leeds United player awaiting scan ahead of Sunderland clash after midweek injury blow

Leeds United manager Daniel Farke has provided an injury update on midfielder Ilia Gruev ahead of his side’s visit to Sunderland on Friday evening.

The Bulgarian was forced off partway through the first half during a 1-1 draw with Norwich City on Tuesday night, and while there has been no concrete prognosis just yet, Farke has suggested that the early signs would appear to suggest that the Whites have cause for concern.

Speaking in a post-match press conference at Carrow Road, the Leeds boss said: “At least it was bad enough so he could not keep going, a knee injury. I hope it's not too bad, we have to wait for the assessment, tomorrow there will be a scan and perhaps I can tell you a bit more. At the moment it doesn't look that great.

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“I'm pretty happy that Ao Tanaka and Joe Rothwell stepped up. You could feel in the second half in terms of positioning, we were a bit open to control their counters and we had more transition moments. I'm happy they delivered such a strong performance, especially Ao. We have to improve our positioning a bit.”

Assuming he is unable to feature at the Stadium of Light on Friday, Gruev will join Leeds captain Ethan Ampadu on the sidelines. The midfielder picked up a lateral knee ligament injury during last weekend’s 3-0 win over Coventry City, and the understanding is that he will be out of action until the new year.

Speaking about his skipper’s absence, Farke said: "You have to expect there will be injuries, have to hope for a little bit of luck. Ethan is our captain, one of our most important players. He is a key piece for balance between defensive stability and offense. It’s a big blow he’s not available but you have to adapt to it."

Tuesday’s result in Norfolk means that Leeds will travel to the North East later this week sitting fourth in the table. Their only Championship defeat of the season so far came against Burnley last month.