Marcelo Bielsa claims he will not rush Kalvin Phillips back from injury in case he breaks down again.
Phillips has been out for Leeds since injuring his calf in the win over Crystal Palace just over two weeks ago and has missed their last three games.
Bielsa claims he is being cautious with the England midfielder because he does not to rush a recurrence of the problem.
“There’s a phrase I try to use frequently that is the player will return subject to his evolution,” said the Leeds head coach.
“When he got injured I told you he had the option of having a quicker return. But his injury is in his calf, it’s a place where we have to avoid him having a recurrence because that can make the situation worse.
“So we’re being very cautious so when he returns, he returns for good.”
Leeds are learning to cope without their talismanic midfielder and their midweek win over Southampton ended a run of five straight defeats when he has been missing.
Leeds also beat Saturday’s opponents Aston Villa 3-0 at Villa Park without Phillips in November in one of their best performances of the season.
Leeds will also be without Rodrigo for Villa on Saturday, while Mateusz Klich is doubtful after coming off injured against Southampton.
Bielsa reported better news on Robin Koch and the Germany centre-half will resume training next week after being out since December with a serious knee injury.
“More or less he’s within the margins of what we expected,” said Bielsa. “He’s a positive player, very hard working and serious about his responsibilities.
“I think he will come back and produce the same type of performances he did prior to his injury.”
