Middlesbrough v Leeds United - Marcelo Bielsa pride in Kalvin Phillips’ England link

Having been watched by England manager Gareth Southgate against Sheffield Wednesday last month, holding midfielder Phillips will have his fingers crossed when the squad for March’s friendlies against Italy and Denmark is announced.

It will be Southgate’s last chance to hand out caps before naming his squad for the European Championships and with England’s midfield the least convincing area of the team, there has been media speculation Phillips will get the call. If he does become the first Leeds player to represent England since Alan Smith in March 2004, coach Marcelo Bielsa says the club will be very “proud”.

For goalkeeper Casilla, the wait is more ominous. He is still to hear if he will receive a Football Association ban after being charged with making a racist comment during September’s match at Charlton Athletic. If found guilty, the ban is likely to be a long one, but at least the FA are not expected to spring a verdict in the build-up to such an important game.

The Whites have come out of a slump in results if not form thanks to back-to-back clean sheets so will not want to be without either key defensive figure at Middlesbrough but it could be the case, depending how able they are to take the pain of impact injuries suffered in Saturday’s victory over Reading.

“He has a problem but maybe he will play,” said Bielsa of Casilla. “It depends on how bad the pain is but if he can play through it, I think he will play.

“The fingers aren’t broken. It’s just inflammation.

“With Phillips, it’s a kick (just below the knee). It depends again on the pain, the same situation as with Kiko. With both players, I am optimistic.”

A total of 31 Leeds players have represented England, but none since they were relegated from the Premier League in 2004. It says much for how impressive Phillips has been that Southgate has even watched a player who is yet to play top-flight football.

“It’s something the club, himself and his team-mates have to be proud of if it happens,” commented Bielsa. “It’s not easy to get into the England squad, so for that reason everyone has to be proud if it happens.”

Having managed Argentina and Chile, Bielsa was careful not to endorse Phillips despite rating the Leeds-born 24-year-old highly.

“I didn’t like other managers talking in the press about which player should be picked so I don’t want to do the same thing,” he explained.

Consecutive 1-0 wins have lifted the mood at Elland Road and with the chasing pack stumbling, Leeds appear to be through the worst of their difficult mid-season period.

In fairness to the Whites, their performances have been consistently good without always having the ruthlessness required at either end. Bielsa is at a loss to explain what, if anything, has changed.

“Football is a discipline where maybe you have the same performance but you get a different result,” he said. “That makes football unpredictable and emotional because there is nothing that says clearly what is going to happen.

“From the same (level of) performance you have different effects, result. This is why it is so attractive.”

Middlesbrough’s injury concerns are more concrete and more worrying, with defenders Anfernee Dijksteel, Dael Fry and Daniel Ayala, plus on-loan forward Patrick Roberts, ruled out tonight.

Ayala and Fry are reckoned to be “two to three weeks” away, while Dijksteel is due to play for the under-23s against Newcastle United on Friday.

There is no clear return date for Roberts.

Despite that, and a run of form which has seen his side go 10 games without a victory, coach Jonathan Woodgate was bullish about beating the club where he started his playing career.

“Leeds are an exceptional team but I believe we can beat them,” said the former centre-back. “We beat West Brom, beat Preston, drew with Fulham and drew with Bristol City.”

Despite his confidence, Woodgate was has warned his players about the complacency which has perhaps dragged them back into the relegation battle after a strong end to 2019.

“Maybe we got a bit complacent,” he reflected. “Maybe we thought we were already clear. I didn’t. I never thought we were clear even when it was 10 points.

“We have to start rolling up our sleeves and getting results quickly. We are fighting for our lives.”

Last six: Middlesbrough DDLDLL; Leeds United WLLDWW.

Referee: G Ward (Surrey).

Last time: Middlesbrough 1 Leeds United 1, February 9, 2019, Championship.