Joe Wainman of All Leeds TV has been discussing Tyler Roberts following the club’s recent defeat at Crystal Palace in the Premier League.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side travelled to south London at the weekend to take on Roy Hodgson’s Eagles and suffered their fourth defeat of the season. The Whites were left frustrated when they were denied an equaliser after Patrick Bamford’s outstretched arm was adjudged to have been in an offside position after a VAR check (as per BBC Sport).
On Saturday afternoon, Tyler Roberts, who is valued at £3.24 million (as per Transfermarkt), started as a substitute but came on after 71 minutes to replace Pascal Struijk to make his sixth league appearance of the season.
When reviewing the performance of the team as a whole, Wainman came to the subject of the 21-year-old and said:
“What does he do when he comes on? Nothing. I just don’t know; I just don’t get it, that’s the thing. What does he do?”
TIF Thoughts on Joe Wainman’s comments regarding Tyler Roberts…
It’s clear from what the YouTuber has had to say that he struggles to understand why Bielsa turns to the former West Bromwich Albion man so frequently. The attacking midfielder made 23 appearances in the Championship last season and according to WhoScored, his average performance rating was 6.61/10.
Do you agree with Joe Wainman regarding Tyler Roberts?
Yes
No
Since Leeds’ promotion to the Premier League, Roberts’ average performance rating has dropped to 6.11/10, therefore you can understand why Wainman has questioned what it is that he brings to the side.
However, it could be argued that the step-up in competition, following the arrivals of the likes of attackers Rodrigo and Raphinha this summer, has likely impacted his level of performance as opposed to it being a case of the player having changed his game.
The frequency with which Bielsa has called upon him, particularly from the bench this season, appears to show the manager’s belief in his abilities despite his form, while it seems clear that regardless of the views of the fans, Roberts, for the time being at least, remains part of Bielsa’s plans.