Four Leeds players could miss pre-season tour to USA depending on World Cup fate

Leeds United’s World Cup players could miss the club’s pre-season tour of the USA should they advance through to the latter knockout stages, Leeds Live understands.

Leeds have four squad members at the tournament; Brenden Aaronson of the USA, Ao Tanaka of Japan, Noah Okafor of Switzerland and Gabriel Gudmundsson of Sweden.

The Whites will fly out to the States ahead of their first summer friendly against Wrexham in Tampa, Florida on July 25 - six days after the World Cup final.

While the odds of any Leeds player making the showpiece itself appear slim, mere advancement to the later knockout stages could rule them out of the tour due to holiday period obligations, club sources have outlined.

After meetings with player union, FIFA said last year it had reached a “consensus” that players “should have a rest period/holiday of at least 21 days at the end of each season”.

The first World Cup knockout phase - the inaugural round of 32 - begins on June 28 and ends on July 4. The last-16 fixtures then take place up until July 7 before the quarter-finals are staged between July 9 and July 12. The semi-finals are set for July 14 and 15.

Leeds players are due to report back at Thorp Arch for the first day of pre-season on July 13 ahead of a week of testing, but those at the World Cup are expected to return later.

After playing Wrexham on July 25, Leeds face Sunderland on July 31 in New Jersey before travelling to Chicago to take on Liverpool on August 2.

Tournament progression, timing and logistics will inevitably all play a role in whether a World Cup player joins Leeds’ pre-season tour. The fact that only a maximum of four players could miss the trip means preparations will not be majorly disrupted.

As is customary, Leeds players who check in for the first day of pre-season will mainly undergo physical testing for the first week or so, with little ball training staged before the squad jets off to the US for the first time in 29 years.

Leeds are also due to play a friendly at Elland Road against RB Salzburg on the weekend of August 8 before the taking on Manchester United at Croke Park in Dublin on August 12, thereby offering the chance of minutes before the Premier League kicks off on August 22.

As for Leeds’ World Cup cohort, only Gudmundsson has taken to the field so far, playing in Sweden's 5-1 win over Tunisia, who have since replaced head coach Sabri Lamouchi with Hervé Renard.

Sweden also have the Netherlands and Ao Tanaka’s Japan in their group, with four points likely to be enough to see teams through to the knockouts amid the opportunity for eight third-place teams to advance. Japan drew 2-2 with the Dutch in their first game.

Aaronson and the USA - who thumped Paraguay 4-1 in their opener - will fancy their chances of progression, with Australia and Turkey in their group. Okafor's Switzerland were held to a 1-1 draw with Qatar last week and have Bosnia & Herzegovina and co-hosts Canada to face.

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