Georginio Rutter’s current predicament at Leeds United is “almost cruel” after he cut a “really tragic figure” after the draw with Sheffield Wednesday, according to Adam Pope.
After coworker Jonny Buchan observed the club-record signing looking “absolutely done in” at the final whistle of the goalless draw on Saturday, the BBC correspondent responded on Don’t Go To Bed Just Yet (4 September).
Despite scoring his first goal for the team in the victory at Ipswich last week (26 August), the Frenchman squandered a fine late opportunity as the Whites struggled to find a way through against a struggling Owls side and was left looking “absolutely disconsolate” afterwards.
Georginio Rutter was utterly dejected at the full-time whistle, according to Buchan (14m 25s). I don’t want to make it sound more dramatic than it was, but he sort of stood by himself while looking down and placing his hands on his hips.
“A few of his teammates, with Ethan Ampadu probably being the most important, approached him to give him an arm around, pat him on the back of the head, and say, “Come on.’ They then led him to the Kop End where they took him to gently walk around and offer a short round of applause to those who were still on the ground.
“He did look Popey absolutely done in at full-time, sadly.”
Added Pope: “Yeah… All eyes were on Rutter as [Willy] Gnonto practically ran straight through the tunnel. To be honest, he just made a pretty tragic figure. Isn’t it almost cruel the way things are right now?
aches and pains
Rutter’s association with the poor leadership of Victor Orta and Andrea Radrizzani, which led to relegation in the club’s final Premier League season, is not his fault.
As the star of last season Rodrigo had previously discovered, arriving for a club-record sum isn’t easy in and of itself, so for a youngster to come in at a time of significant need for the club and and not be what the team was crying out for will have further added to the mounting pressure.
Similarly, players with much higher salaries and reputations than him have had difficulty getting going offensively in the past, albeit his first goal in the Ipswich victory was a promising indication of things to come.
Rutter was also just prevented from scoring the game-winning goal by a very astute Devis Vasquez save in the first half, but predictably the attention will instead be on his much weaker chance when played through late in the second 45.
Joel Piroe’s deployment as a number 10 by Daniel Farke didn’t work out at all either, and it appears that playing the Dutchman more forward and the teenager slightly off him may be the key to success for both players.
Patrick Bamford and Mateo Joseph will eventually put pressure on Rutter to give up his spot, but the manager showed confidence in him throughout the summer, and there have been encouraging signs thus far this season.
There is a good chance he can still play a significant role for the team this season, but one or two more goals might swiftly transform the situation.
