West Bromwich Albion journalist and podcaster Chris Lepkowski has been singing the praises of Okay Yokuslu and his performance for the Baggies in their recent 1-1 draw against Manchester United in the Premier League.
This comes after Lepkowski recently co-hosted the latest episode of West Brom-themed podcast The Liquidator where he spoke about a number of topics concerning Sam Allardyce’s side.
On the subject of Yokuslu, who made his first start for the Midlands club in the game against United, Lepkowski had this to say about his performance in the match.
He said: “I thought he did well, protecting our backline, our defence, which is something we’ve lacked. I thought he had an energy about him. He was looking to move the ball quickly, get the ball played out quickly. I thought he looked really impressive.
“Obviously not quite fully fit yet because he did tire very quickly in that second half, but I was very impressed by him.”
West Brom recently signed Yokuslu on a loan deal until the end of the current season from Spanish side Celta Vigo. Since arriving in England, the 26-year-old, who is currently valued at £3.6 million, made his first appearance for the club during their 2-0 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur where he came on as a late substitute.
After that, Yokuslu made his first start for the club against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side where he played over an hour before being taken off.
TIF Thoughts on Chris Lepkowski’s comments on Yokuslu’s performance against United…
Given how the midfield man managed to earn himself a respectable match rating of 6.83/10 for his performance against United, in which he tallied up a combined total of six interceptions and clearances – with only Semi Ajayi (nine) recording more – this shows that he had a fairly successful first start for his new club.
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Moving forward, in our view, if Yokuslu can build his fitness up, as Lepkowski mentioned in the podcast, and can continue putting in good performances for the Baggies, he could potentially be seen as a very successful and useful winter signing from the club.