Leeds United star's urgent job as Daniel Farke reveals source of struggle and stark numbers

When the young Frenchman is up, you can see it in his face, in his play and in his numbers. The huge smile, the post-victory screams, the stepovers and roulettes. Between February 10 and March 17 he played eight times and contributed eight assists. The smile barely left his face. Leeds were winning and he was playing a big part, touching the ball between 35 and 68 times per game. In that spell his ball carries never dropped below 24 per game. He was taking players on, lots of them, and beating plenty of them. In the stunning win over Leicester, when he set up two goals, he attempted 15 take-ons and on seven occasions carried the ball 10 yards or more towards the opposition goal.

Then came the international break. Leeds took the opportunity to send Rutter for minor surgery on a hernia issue. The Rutter who went into that break has not re-emerged. On Saturday when he was withdrawn by Daniel Farke in the second half his body language was that of a player whose joy had abandoned him entirely. Gone is the smile. He is no longer up and his numbers reflect that. In the last three games his ball carries have dropped to the low to mid teens, his progressive carries have all but dried up completely and he has attempted no more than four take-ons. In 12 matches this season he has successfully taken on and beaten players on at least five occasions. Against Southampton he failed to register a single successful take-on. He's attempted fewer passes and fallen below his season average for pass completion percentage. He hasn't scored or assisted since the break and the surgery. In short, his output has fallen off a cliff.

Farke makes no secret of the issues facing an attacker who sits second in the division for assists [15], big chances created [22] and successful dribbles per game [2.8].

"You could feel it a little bit," said the manager after Saturday's defeat, which along with Ipswich's win over Huddersfield consigned Leeds to the play-offs. "Overall it's important to give him the sign he shouldn't be too angry and disappointed. Who should be blamed for this? He's having an outstanding season, in the team of the season, unbelievable amount of assists, one of our main parts. It's unlucky and fate that injury was there and surgery was needed. He wanted to come back as quick as possible and was forced more or less to go into the games. He's a pretty emotional player, a confidence player who feels it. It was quite normal the first games he played more or less without training and was not there with his best and this impacted his confidence. We tried to give him some confidence, but he's 22 a few weeks ago, for him it's the first full season in English football."

The weekend was bleak, as the last couple have been. Though a good number of fans remained beyond the full-time whistle on Saturday and attempted to try and rouse the spirits of their team for the play-off fight that lies ahead, morale and confidence were visibly low. Rutter is far from alone in feeling it. And this week he'll be far from alone as he attempts to rediscover his spark. "In the last two games I gave him the chance to find his rhythm back, on the training pitch he looks good," said Farke. "He needs to find confidence again on the pitch. We'll have to work with him, we definitely need him back close to his best. Hopefully the next eight days will be beneficial for him."

Team-mates who owe so much to his trickery, vision and unselfishness have a part to play, alongside the coaching staff, in getting the best out of Rutter this week at Thorp Arch and then in the Championship play-offs. The fans will be with him too, come kick-off at Carrow Road next Sunday. Rutter has built himself a level of popularity this season that escaped him during a nightmarish introduction to English football in a relegation-bound Premier League side. His on-field contributions and ability have been the foundations and his boyish enthusiasm for life has become an off-field bonus. Knowing that he's loved and valued could play a big part in any resurrection of his confidence. He too has a big and urgent job to do, reminding himself of the player he can be and what it is that he has done this season. When he goes for his pre-match walk around the Carrow Road pitch he would do well to recall the danger he posed during his last visit, linking up well with Crysencio Summerville, teeing up Glen Kamara for a golden chance, the role he played at the start and the end of Shane Duffy's own goal or the perfect pass he slid down the line for Summerville's winner.

And though it's so much easier said than it is done, the act of putting the ball in the Norwich net would be the key to unlocking his pre-surgery form and putting that smile back on his face. Earlier this season he told the YEP: "I think for the boss it's like if we win and I don't score, I know that he knows I'm angry. You know when you're a striker and you don't score, I know someone wants me to score, some fans as well are a bit, you know what I mean, it's frustrating. I like to score, when you score it's unbelievable."

However it comes back, whatever it takes for Leeds and Rutter to be up again, it needs to happen this week. Playing with confidence is an absolute must if he wants to wear a Premier League badge on his sleeve next season.