Leeds United attacker Wilfried Gnonto was substituted at half-time in an Italy Under-21 match on Friday due to a suspected ankle problem.
Although the severity of the injury is not yet known, it could leave the Championship table-toppers without one of their key attackers for their next game against Swansea.
Gnonto’s Experience Under Daniel Farke
When Leeds were relegated from the Premier League, fans and pundits alike thought that Gnonto would be one of Leeds’ best players and thrive in the Championship, but the reality of the situation has been much more complex.
After trying to force a move away from the club in the summer of 2023, the Italian was benched by Daniel Farke at the start of the 23/24 season. The sublime form of Daniel James and Crysencio Summerville meant that Gnonto played just 1,600 league minutes last season, though he still managed to score eight goals and provide three assists.
This season, Gnonto started the campaign as one of Farke’s first-choice wingers, but he has recently fallen behind Manor Solomon in the pecking order. The diminutive attacker has not started a league game since the turn of the year and has only got one goal or assist since mid-December.
However, he was brought on at half-time in Leeds’ most recent game, against Queens Park Rangers, to play in the number 10 position and he played a key part in helping the Whites to secure a draw at Loftus Road despite being two-nil down after half an hour.
Injury Issues?
Unfortunately, this is not the first time that Gnonto has suffered an ankle injury, nor is it the first time that he has picked up an injury whilst on international duty.
In fact, it was during the March international break last year when the attacker picked up a muscular injury that ruled him out of two games entirely and forced him to start two more games on the bench, massively disrupting the momentum he was starting to build after finally breaking into Leeds’ first-choice team.
The former FC Zürich man also missed a month of last season after a problem with his ankle ligaments surfaced during Leeds’ goalless draw against Hull City in September 2023.
However, the winger has managed to stay injury-free this season until now. Gnonto has been in every matchday squad for Daniel Farke’s team to date, though this run may end on Saturday.
Writer’s View
The timing of this potential injury is brutal for Gnonto and one can only hope that it is not too serious.
The game against QPR was one of the first times that Daniel Farke has given Gnonto the chance to play more centrally and he thrived in that role during the second half, taking up positions in tight spaces and dragging the Hoops’ defence out of shape.
The poor form of Brenden Aaronson in recent weeks may have meant that Gnonto could have taken up the number 10 position on a more permanent basis, though this injury looks to have curtailed those hopes.
The Italian will be hoping to force his way back into Daniel Farke’s plans before the end of the season, or else he may decide to move elsewhere in search of regular first-team football.
