As stated by Leeds United News, Newsome said: “Rodon’s got to come back in. For me, for Coops. Struijk, in my opinion, fared far better. I believed he was the one who played aggressively.
We still didn’t get any support from it for that unbalanced part. Additionally, he feels uneasy exiting on the right side. Coops wasn’t performing at his peak today, I reasoned.
Reality check
After Adam Armstrong gave the Saints a rare early lead just two minutes into his journey to the South Coast, Daniel Farke was forced to confront reality.
Cooper’s subpar performance contributed to the end of Leeds’ six-game unbeaten streak in the Championship as things continued to go worse.
Despite the fact that Cooper was only one of many Leeds players who performed below par at St Mary’s, many people were shocked when Rodon was left out of the starting lineup.
Cooper assisted Leeds in keeping a clean sheet last weekend against Watford, so perhaps the manager did not want to change a winning team. The Welshman and Struijk have been Farke’s go-to tandem this season.
However, this choice backfired. Many would argue that Cooper could have done more to attempt and thwart Southampton’s subsequent goals after he entirely lost Armstrong in the lead-up to Southampton’s opening score. Rodon has excelled for Farke this season and made a superb transition to the team.
The supporters at Elland Road will remain upbeat despite the outcome but dismayed by the manner of the loss. Although Southampton has had a slow start to life in the Championship, many anticipated them to pick up steam eventually, and Leeds just so happened to be the unfortunate recipient.
Although Cooper has been an important player for the Whites for a number of seasons, talent is frequently rewarded over loyalty.
