Leeds United were beaten 2-1 by promotion rivals Southampton at Elland Road on the final day of the 2023/24 Championship season last Saturday.
Their place in the play-offs was confirmed, as Ipswich Town won their match to finish second in the division, and they will now face off against Norwich City in two legs for a place at Wembley in the final.
Daniel Farke will face off against his former club, where he won two promotions to the Premier League, and the first leg will be at Carrow Road at noon on Sunday.
The Whites will want to ensure that they take the tie to Elland Road with something to play for, whether that is a draw or a win, and that makes the first leg crucial to their success.
Therefore, the German head coach needs to ensure that his team selection is spot on and does not let him down in Norfolk, which is why Ilia Gruev should finally be ruthlessly ditched from the starting XI as time is now up for him.
Ilia Gruev's last two performances for Southampton
The Bulgaria international was selected to start in midfield against Russell Martin's side on Saturday but failed to justify his continued selection with another underwhelming display.
LeedsLive's Beren Cross awarded Gruev a player rating of 4/10 for his display, writing that he looked yards off the pace and was rusty against the Saints.
The former Werder Bremen star did complete 98% of his attempted passes (50/51) on Saturday but only created one chance, and zero 'big chances', which suggests that there was not much quality or progression in his ball-playing.
He was also, as the aforementioned journalist claimed, off the pace from a defensive perspective as the lightweight lost three of his four duels during the game, which shows that the opposition dominated him from a physical perspective.
The Athletic's Phil Hay posted on X during the match that Gruev, and Glen Kamara, was "struggling" to get in position to cut out Saints attacks, and that is reflected in his 25% duel success rate.
In the 4-0 loss to QPR in the previous match, LeedsLive reporter Cross handed the midfielder a dreadful match rating of just 2/10, writing that he had 'zero presence' in front of the back four to provide an effective screen in the middle of the park.
Much like the clash with Southampton, Gruev's work out of possession left a lot to be desired as he lost all six of his ground duels on the night, and failed to close down his man quickly enough for the first two QPR goals.
He has not been a substitute in the Championship since New Year's Day against Birmingham and Farke must finally drop him down to the bench due to his poor form in recent matches ahead of this big play-off clash with Norwich.
Ilia Gruev's form in the Championship this season
His recent underperformance in the middle of the park is a big shame as the former Bundesliga ace had been fantastic for large parts of the campaign prior to these recent games during the run-in.
Signed from Werder Bremen on a permanent deal last summer, Gruev had to bide his time for starts as he made nine appearances off the bench during the first half of the season.
In 20 starts, and 29 appearances in total, the Bulgarian maestro has displayed his quality in and out of possession, with his composed play on the ball and his defensive strength off of it.
Appearances
29
Ground duel success rate
54%
Aerial duel success rate
62%
Ball recoveries per game
3.1
Possession lost per game
4.6
As you can see in the table above, the 24-year-old gem has won the majority of his battles on the ground and in the air throughout the season.
He currently ranks within the top 3% of Championship midfielders for pass accuracy (90.0%) and the top 47% for progressive passes per 90 (4.36), which shows that the talented gem has been extremely reliable on the ball and progressive with his passes.
Gruev also ranks within the top 20% of his positional peers or higher for tackles per 90 (2.38) and interceptions per 90 (1.37) respectively, which speaks to his defensive awareness and willingness to get stuck in.
However, the left-footed whiz has lost nine of his ten ground duels and only made three combined tackles and interceptions over the last two games, against Southampton and QPR, which shows that he is completely out of form and why the time should be up for him in the XI.
Who Leeds should replace Ilia Gruev with
Dropping Gruev to the bench would free up a space in midfield next to Kamara for another player to step up in the play-off clash with Norwich on Sunday.
Farke could turn to the youthful enthusiasm of Archie Gray in the middle of the park, after the Championship Young Player of the Season was a substitute against Southampton.
His last start came against QPR in the 4-0 defeat at Loftus Road but the teenage sensation was one of the better performers on the night for Leeds, winning 100% of his ground duels (4/4) and making five combined tackles and interceptions to go along with a 90% pass success rate.
Norwich's Gabriel Sara has racked up 13 goals and 12 assists from midfield for the Canaries so far this season and Gray's defensive strength could be useful against the Brazilian maestro, whereas Gruev's recent form suggests that he would be caught out in duels against the talented star.
Appearances
44
Starts
40
Tackles and interceptions per game
2.8
Ball recoveries per game
4.5
Duel success rate
55%
Ground duel success rate
57%
As you can see in the table above, the England U21 international has been consistent throughout the season in his duels, winning the majority of his battles across 40 starts.
Therefore, Gray should be unleashed ahead of the underperforming Gruev in midfield next to Kamara against the Yellows on Sunday, to give Farke's side the best chance of picking up a positive result to take back to Yorkshire for the second leg.
