Soccer Football - Premier League - Leeds United v West Ham United - Elland Road, Leeds, Britain - January 4, 2023 New Leeds United signing Maximilian Wober is seen on the pitch before the match Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club /league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
Phil Hay believes that new Leeds United recruit Maximilian Wober will be a better fit at left back than Pascal Struijk has been.
The Lowdown: Important business completed
It was pretty obvious that Leeds and Jesse Marsch needed a new left-back this month with natural centre-back Struijk playing in that position for the majority of the season thus far.
Therefore, the fact Victor Orta has gone out, identified a target and struck up a sensible deal early on will be pleasing for both Leeds fans and Marsch as it now allows Wober time to integrate into the team.
However, it’s not all great news though as Wober may not be widely regarded as a natural left-back having spent the majority of his career as a centre-back, which could mean he’s just another Struijk and playing out of position.
The Latest: Hay backs Wober to thrive
Hay has made the bold claim on The Phil Hay Show that Wober will turn out to be a better left-back than Struijk, because of his history of playing in that position for RB Salzburg.
He said: (46:35) “I’m totally open to the idea and the philosophy of players being able to play in more than one position and Bielsa was a massive advocate of that in particular.
“I’m going to stick my neck out and say I think they have more of a left back in Wober than they have in Pascal Struijk at the moment.”
The Verdict: The pressure is on Wober to perform
After not signing a left-back over the summer Leeds have been putting square pegs in round holes so far this season when it comes to Struijk and having to cope with Junior Firpo’s constant injury issues.
Therefore, with Wober having 39 games as a left-back under his belt during his time out in Austria, it would be expected of him to come in and show he’s an accomplished left-sided defender.
However, it may not be as straightforward as Struijk has been able to do a decent job in his makeshift position as he boasts the third-best Sofascore of players to have started a league game but to make Leeds more balanced it would be sensible to get Wober in as soon as possible.
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