Leeds United (H) | Foster's Preview
On Wednesday night, Argyle were seconds away from registering a win against play-off chasing Coventry City, only for a last-second equaliser to spoil the party.
Argyle, who had played well enough to feel like a three-point haul was deserved, would have been understandably deflated by the late goal, but as they get set to play again, on Saturday lunchtime at Home Park, Head Coach Ian Foster says his players’ heads do not need lifting.
“We’re going to be playing Leeds United live on TV in front of a sell-out crowd - there's no geeing up required,” said Foster.
“The players will be excited at the prospect of facing Leeds again. It's a wonderful challenge for us and we look forward to it.”
It is not very long since Argyle and Leeds met – twice – in the Emirates FA Cup. The sides drew 1-1 at Elland Road, then played out the same scoreline in 90 minutes at Home Park, before Leeds pulled away in extra time.
Leeds rotated heavily for the games, with a huge depth of quality to call upon. Argyle, for their part, had up to nine players missing through injury and ineligibility, and held their own against a side who have won seven successive games in the Sky Bet Championship, and sit second in the division.
It is difficult to know what starting 11s will line up against each other on Saturday, but Foster sees the tactical battle as a similar one to that which we have experienced of late.
“Nothing's really changed, tactically, in the way Leeds play,” he said. “We can use all our footage in terms of things of things we did well against them, and areas we need to improve, in the build up with all the analysis that we do. Hopefully we’ll learn from the mistakes we made in the games, and hopefully we can build on the bits that we did particularly well.
“The games have been a challenge. It's one that the players have to concentrate in consistently. They pose so many different challenges, with the qualities that they have; not only the starters, but the players that they're able to bring onto the pitch. It's mentally challenging.
“We just have to make sure that we focus on the game plan. We stick together in times where Leeds will be dominant in the game, and then we use the moments where we can show our quality in the final third.
“In these games, you have to be ruthless, because chances might be few and far between. We've shown over the course of the two games, in the 90-minute periods, that we can stay in the game against Leeds.
“We're certainly not a finished article. We need to work a lot harder on our ball retention at times. We need to be braver. I thought the second half performance against Coventry showed moments of that, but these are very difficult games in order to keep the ball against good opposition.
“We're trying to implement a playing style, but we're also trying to be solid and play from a structure where we're difficult to beat.
“The players came in on Thursday; most for a recovery session, and there was a session for the finishers, on the grass. We have to assess people in terms of where they’re at physically, and where they're at mentally.
“It is a challenging time, and the last thing we want to do is pick up any injuries in these moments. We have to be sensible with team selection, we have to share the load, but it's always an opportunity for others to step in, like they did on Wednesday night, and show everyone what they're capable of.”
