Here are the latest evening Leeds United headlines on Saturday, July 31.
Man United all-clear to resume training
Leeds United's opening day opponents Manchester United have been handed a boost as they have returned to training after a ‘small number’ of players and staff returned positive Covid-19 tests last week.
The Red Devils were forced to cancel Saturday’s pre-season friendly against Preston North End because of the news.
The club confirmed that a ‘small number’ of players and staff had tested positive following a round of lateral flow tests at the training ground.
They were then able to confirm that there were no positive cases within the squad after completing PCR tests but this came after the cancellation of their friendly.
In a statement, Man United said: “After further testing yesterday and today we can confirm that there are no positive cases within the First Team group.
"Following consultation with the Premier League they are satisfied that all Covid protocols have been followed correctly and the squad can return to training immediately."
Player ratings
Leeds' pre-season campaign continued on Saturday afternoon with a friendly against Real Betis at Loughborough University.
Marcelo Bielsa named a strong side for the clash against the LaLiga team, with Patrick Bamford getting his first minutes of the pre-season.
The Leeds number nine grabbed the opening goal, with Mateusz Klich also netting in a 3-2 defeat.
Here are our on-the-whistle player ratings.
Defensive injuries
While the manner of the 3-2 defeat to Betis will not be too concerning for Bielsa, seeing two centre-backs limp off injured will have.
Diego Llorente was replaced half-way through the first half after pulling up, while Pascal Struijk was on the receiving end of a kick from Nabir Fakir in the final ten minutes.
Read more on the two injuries here.
Do you want an exclusive pre-season Leeds United preview - both in your inbox and through your letterbox? Head over here to find out more and secure your copy.
