OPINION
Phil Hay has delivered a vote of confidence for Leeds United defender Ben White after his side’s 1-0 defeat to Charlton Athletic on Saturday afternoon.
Marcelo Bielsa’s men were undone by a soft goal from a corner in the first half, but Hay has been quick to quash suggestions that it was a consequence of United missing last season’s standout performer Pontus Jansson, who White has been brought in to replace.
Writing in a Q&A for The Athletic, Hay said: “White is giving Leeds a nice flow from the back (or at least on the days when they play well).
“He looks as good defensively as Jansson too.”
Nobody knows Leeds like Phil Hay knows Leeds, and he’s bang on the money once again with his assessment here.
White has really hit the ground running at Elland Road.
So far this term, as per Wyscout, he has won 68.8% of his defensive duels as well as 58.5% of his aerial duels.
If we compare those figures to the ones recorded by Jansson last term, they actually hold up pretty well.
The Swede registered averages of 71% defensive duels won, as well as winning 54% of his aerial duels, as per Wyscout.
Addressing the second part of Hay’s claim, referencing White’s prowess on the ball, it’s a similar story.
White has averaged a pass completion rate of 91.9% this term, slightly edging out Jansson’s 90.4% from last term.
Likewise, his averaged of 68.1% accurate passes into final third is marginally better than Jansson’s 67.8%.
Those incremental gains aren’t earth-shattering, granted, but they do show that White is offering just as much assurance on that ball at the back, if not a tad more, than his predecessor did.
Perhaps most telling of all, however, is the comparison between the two players’ Whoscored ratings.
Last year, in a fine campaign that took his side to the brink of promotion, Jansson managed a rating of 7.27.
Already this season, White has eclipsed that rating, wracking up an average of 7.39.
As Hay alludes to in his verdict on White, United have found a very, very suitable replacement for Jansson.