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da 888casino： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Speaking on episode 65 of the Inside Elland Road podcast, Graham Smyth has had his say on defender Ben White, hailing the impact he’s had on the Leeds squad since his arrival.
What’s he said?
Leeds have only conceded twice in the league this season but their worst defensive display, a 2-2 draw in normal time with Stoke, was consequently without White.
The defender arrived on loan from Brighton in the summer and had a rather shaky start to his time at Elland Road, making a mistake in a pre-season friendly with Cagliari.
However, he’s bounced back, forming a partnership with Liam Cooper in the early weeks of the season that’s taken them top of the Championship.
He’s earned plenty of admirers, not least from supporters but also from YEP journalist Smyth who commenting on the Inside Elland Road podcast, gave his verdict on the 21-year-old. He said:
“He’s removed that question mark over the centre half position.
“He’ll find the ball on the flank and instead of knocking it away to safety he’ll let it run through his legs, spin on a sixpence and leave the player for dead. He looks like the player Leeds claim they were confident of getting in the summer. That’s the reason why they wanted him and they felt like they could replace Jansson.”
White can do no wrong
The centre-half has been imperious at the back for Leeds this season and the fact they lost without him in the side tells the story of how big a difference he makes.
White has played in all five of Leeds’ league outings this term and has bounced back tremendously from that initial error.
Since then he’s grown in stature and confidence to complete 2.6 tackles per game. The 6 foot 1 youngster looks every bit a Championship player despite never appearing at his level before and it’s easy to see why Marcelo Bielsa is a big fan of him.
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This summer, Leeds decided not to take on a new player in defence on a permanent basis after they lost Pontus Jansson and so far that judgement call has been vindicated.
White has stepped into his shoes tremendously well, making a mightily impressive 3.4 interceptions each match. On top of that, He’s made 3.6 interceptions and completed 87.8% of his passes every outing, per WhoScored.
This is a player who has made the leap into the second-tier with aplomb.
Question marks were always going to be there over the defence and indeed pre-season brought concerns.
However, as Smyth describes, they’ve now been removed. If White can stay fit then it’s likely he’ll have a huge say on Leeds’ promotion hopes.
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