Speaking on a recent episode of The Phil Hay Show, the journalist discussed the importance of midfielder Mateusz Klich to the Leeds United side.
Since joining Leeds from FC Twente in what was a £1.53 million deal back in 2017, Klich has gone on to feature 113 times for the Whites, scoring 19 goals and providing 16 assists along the way.
So far this season, the £3.15 million-rated 30-year-old has highly impressed for Marcelo Bielsa’s side, scoring two goals and providing two assists over his six Premier League appearances, averaging a WhoScored match rating of 7.01 – ranking him as the club’s sixth-best performer in the league.
Speaking before Leeds’ 4-1 defeat to Leicester City, the Poland international was one topic of conversation on a recent episode of The Phil Hay Show, in which Hay stated his belief that the midfielder would one of the most difficult to replace in Marcelo Bielsa’s squad, should he be unavailable for any reason.
In response to a question asking him whether he believed Klich would be one of the hardest players to replace, Hay said: “I suspect so. Although, I do look at [Jamie] Shackleton, and I see in Shackleton quite a lot of the attributes that I see in Klich.
“I think it’s just the fact that Shackleton isn’t proven in the same way and Klich now has this long, long run of games where consistently, he’s looked excellent and consistently, he’s looked far above the value of the £1.5 million that Leeds paid for him.
“In terms of Klich, I think you’re right, I think that is another area that you don’t particularly want to contemplate; the idea of him being out for any length of time.
“I’m not going to jinx him by saying he never looks like dropping out of the team, but it is a huge bonus that his body seems to hold up to whatever it is that Bielsa asks of him.”
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TIF Thoughts on Phil Hay’s comments regarding Mateusz Klich’s importance…
From Hay’s comments, while the journalist does appear to be of the belief that Shackleton could, if required, step in in the place of Klich, he does also go on to state that he would not want to contemplate the thought of the 30-year-old getting injured for any amount of time.
We have to say, considering how impressive Klich has been for Leeds so far this season, should he be unavailable for selection for whatever reason, it would, in our opinion, be a rather large blow for Bielsa’s side.