Pontus Jansson Might Have Been Dropped For These Three Reasons
Leeds United strengthened their hold on a playoff position in the EFL Championship after they defeated direct rivals Brighton & Hove Albion 2-0 at the Elland Road on Saturday evening.
Despite the positive performance and the excellent result, the news that made the headlines; a news that made waves among the Whites’ fans was manager Garry Monk dropping star defender Pontus Jansson from the starting XI in favour of Scotland international Liam Cooper.
Jansson has arguably been the best centre-half in the Championship this season. The Swedish international has established himself as a defensive mainstay in the backline for Leeds. The 26-year old has featured 30 times this season and has been extremely solid at the back. He has also chipped in with three goals and three assists for the Whites.
So, he was a surprise omission on Saturday, given the magnitude and the importance of the clash against the Seagulls. While Cooper stepped up and performed well in the game, the reasons for Jansson’s absence remains unclear.
Speaking after the game, Monk, when questioned about his decision to field the Scotsman ahead of Jansson, said:
“I will always put the group first, and I try and make my selections on the team based on the setup and principles we adhere to
“You’ve seen in the past, many times, that I’ll make changes if I feel it’s best for the group, and I’ve done it throughout the season – whether that be tactically, through suspension, through injuries or whether it’s just that I feel that’s what that game needs.
“I will always make decisions on what is best for the group, and tonight, that happened to be one of the decisions.”
Jansson, who is on international duty with Sweden said that he was totally accepting the manager’s decision. Speaking to Footboll Skanalen he said:
“It was the coach’s decision. I accept it. I’m just happy that we won and took another step towards the Premier League.
“I respect it fully and we won the game so we cannot blame him for that. He stands behind his decision.
“He gave me an explanation but it stays between me and him. It’s between coaches and players. I stand behind it 100 percent.”
Cooper, as a result, made his 10th appearance in the Championship this term and put in a decent shift. His appearance earned him a call-up to the Scotland national team for their upcoming fixtures against Canada and Slovenia. With speculations refusing to die down over the omission of Jansson from the team, here we look at three possible reasons that might have played a hand in Monk’s decision:
Injury Threat
On hearing what Monk had to say about the dropping of Jansson, the fact that he kept stressing that he made the selection as it suited best for his team, makes one wonder if Jansson was carrying an injury or was in risk of causing some physical damage to himself. And as a result, Monk decided to field two centre-backs who were 100% match fit against the Brighton attack.
However, the fact that Jansson made it to the bench and is with Sweden to perform his international duties against Belarus and Portugal, does bring this possibility under a cloud of doubt.
Ill-Discipline
Another way to look at what Monk said in his veiled statement, would be that Jansson had crossed a disciplinary line behind the scenes and as a result was being punished for his actions.
The fact that both the manager and the player are being so secretive about the whole development makes this possibility very likely.
Challenge to the Squad
And finally, to throw some positive light on the entire issue, it could very well have been Garry Monk’s challenge to his squad to step up and perform against a top club without their star man.
The Whites have struggled in the past without the Swede in their line-up, most recently against Cardiff City last month. If Jansson became unavailable at the end of the season for the playoff games, due to some reasons, injury or suspension, it would be a huge blow for Leeds. And if Monk dropped him to instill confidence and self-belief in his squad that they can perform without Jansson, it probably was a smart move.