Leeds: Fans react as White named PFA Fans’ Player of the Month

Many Leeds United supporters have been reacting on social media in response to the Whites announcing that Ben White clinched the PFA Fans’ Player of the Month award for August after receiving 44% of the votes.

The on-loan Brighton and Hove Albion centre-half has appeared in every minute of Championship action available so far this season (WhoScored), as he holds down a place in Marcelo Bielsa’s plans alongside captain Liam Cooper.

White has helped record three clean sheets during his second-tier appearances to date, including shutting out Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium and Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium, as Leeds continue to hold the best defensive record in the division.

To achieve their position, and maintain an early place in the promotion picture, White has averaged the second-most tackles per 90 minutes of any centre-half in the second tier to have played more than two games, along with the most interceptions.

The 21-year-old also boasts an 87.5% pass accuracy rating from his 395 attempted passes this term, which includes the highest number of accurate short balls (326) of any Leeds player with Kalvin Phillips and Liam Cooper (304) ranking joint-second.

Poole-born White has also won 17 aerial duels, second only to Cooper (26), completed the second-most tackles (15) to Phillips (28) and can brag the most interceptions (25) by far, with Phillips and Cooper joint-second with eight.

White beat competition from fellow Leeds star Patrick Bamford for the award, who received 9% of the votes, along with Swansea City’s Borja Baston (16%), Charlton Athletic’s Lyle Taylor (15%), Preston North End’s Daniel Johnson (12%) and Hull City’s Jarrod Bowen (5%).

Here’s how these fans reacted to news of White’s recognition…

Quality! Well deserved, came into this squad with usual Leeds fans saying ‘He’ll be no Pontus’ yet he’s stepped upto the mark at 21 and bossed it!

— LiamFox. (@LiamFox1994) September 4, 2019