LEEDS United head coach Marcelo Bielsa spoke to the press ahead of the Sky Bet Championship encounter with Middlesbrough.

Both sides head into tomorrow's clash at Elland Road unbeaten in the division and level on points. A capacity crowd is expected for the fixture and Bielsa was quizzed on whether this would be their toughest test yet.

“It is difficult to make comparisons, because when we played against Stoke and Swansea, we had an opposition against us who were a couple of months ago Premier League sides,” he said.

“Middlesbrough are an important rival opponent, there is no doubt about that and it will be a very difficult and tough game. Their style is well known and their head coach (Tony Pulis) is a legend in English football.”

Bielsa also gave an update on the injury situation, saying: “Liam Cooper has a chance of playing (against Middlesbrough) and Adam Forshaw will be available again after the international break.

“If Liam comes back, it will be a plus for the team, he is a captain and an important and courageous player. If he can’t play, we have other options for this position and these options offer the same qualities.

“Pontus Jansson was one of the best players in the last two games and in the matches he has been involved in, has played close to his potential. I don’t know if Tom Pearce or Jamie Shackleton will be available on Friday or not yet.”

Meanwhile, deep-lying midfielder Kalvin Phillips has been influential for the Whites this season and he is hoping his side can bounce straight back from the disappointing Carabao Cup defeat to Preston North End.

He said: “We had a lot of chances against Preston, but we couldn’t find the back of the net. We were disappointed with their second goal too. There is no way a player should be running that far with the ball, even though it was a great finish.

“We will address the negatives from the Preston game and work on it for Friday’s match. It is a game we are really excited about and hopefully we'll be able to do a job on Middlesbrough.”