Leeds United ended the regular Championship season with a whimper rather than a bang, allowing Ipswich Town to comfortably pick up that coveted second automatic spot after losing 2-1 to Southampton.
Daniel Farke's Whites almost looked resigned to their fate in the playoffs from minute one at Elland Road, with their fate becoming a reality when Adam Armstrong and Will Smallbone netted for Russell Martin's Saints to sour the mood even more in West Yorkshire.
Heading into the lottery of the playoffs, the German boss will need to make some key decisions when it comes to team selections which could even see this Whites ace – once described as "blistering" by talent scout Jacek Kulig – boldly dropped for the first leg away at Norwich City after underwhelming on the big stage against Southampton.
Georginio Rutter's performance v Saints in numbers
Georginio Rutter has struggled in recent weeks for Farke's faltering Leeds side, seen in his lackadaisical display in the 4-3 Middlesbrough away win in April with just seven accurate passes completed.
His display in the 2-1 home defeat yesterday was even worse, with the Frenchman way off the pace and out-of-sorts attempting to advance forward with his usual trickery and tenacity.
Only managing to better his accurate pass count from the enthralling Boro game by one versus Martin's pumped-up Saints, Rutter also only registered 28 touches of the ball against the determined visitors from the South Coast.
That was even less than goalkeeper Illan Meslier managed between the sticks for the anxious promotion hopefuls, with the unconvincing shot-stopper amassing six more at 34.
Minutes played
62
Touches
28
Accurate passes
8/13
Shots on goal
0
Duels won
4/11
Possession lost
12x
Hauled off just after the hour mark by an irritated Farke, Rutter would completely fail to test Alex McCarthy when still present on the Elland Road turf with zero shots on goal with the Saints defence also untroubled further by a lack of successful darting runs from the usually electric Frenchman.
Handed out a low 3/10 rating after the dismal defeat by Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Graham Smyth, who described Rutter as a 'shadow' of the player who has terrorised second-tier defences for fun this season, the 22-year-old could now find his spot taken up by a different body for the upcoming trip to Carrow Road.
The player who could replace Rutter
Despite putting in a lethal performance in front of goal by scoring Leeds' equaliser on the day, Farke could be tempted to reshuffle the pack and play Joel Piroe as an attacking midfielder for the showdown with the Canaries coming up.
The Leeds number seven shone against the Saints as a creator as well as a deadly finisher, accumulating three key passes in the match as well as firing home his only effort on McCarthy's net.
This could allow for Leeds to spring a surprise on David Wagner's Norwich and potentially start Mateo Joseph up top, giving the Whites hotshot an unbelievable chance to become a playoff hero at just 20 years of age.
There could also be the potential of Patrick Bamford being back fit for this crunch game away in Norfolk, having sat out the final day owing to a bruised knee.
Yet, having never scored a goal in the Championship playoffs across his lengthy career to date, fortune could favour the bold with Piroe played behind Joseph in a major shakeup up-front.
Leeds could well end up facing Southampton again in the playoff final at Wembley, knowing they will have to be so much better across two legs against Norwich to stand a chance of joining Leicester City and Ipswich in the Premier League.
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ByDan EmeryMay 2, 2024