Journalist Conor McGilligan has slammed Sam Greenwood after his display for Leeds United in a recent match.
Earlier this week, the Whites took on Barnsley in the second round of the EFL Cup. A fine 25-yard strike from Luis Sinisterra was followed up by a double from Mateusz Klich as the home side claimed a solid 3-1 victory in front of a packed Elland Road.
Despite the club successfully progressing into the next round of the competition with relative ease, it seems as though not every Leeds player did enough to impress on the day.
Indeed, according to McGilligan – who was speaking on the One Leeds Fan Channel, Greenwood was ‘poor’ against the League One opposition.
He explained (10:23): “I’m not convinced on Greenwood yet. He’s a young lad. He’s a striker. That is his preferred position.
“So when you see him playing DM [defensive midfield] I’m a little bit like, okay, very, very different position. You got the whole field in front of you.
“And I thought last night he was poor. That was a real worry.”
Will Sam Greenwood make it at Leeds?
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TIF thoughts on Sam Greenwood and Leeds…
Still only just 20 years of age, the youngster has spent most of his career playing in more attacking roles, so it was a bit of a surprise to see him operating in a much deeper role against Barnsley.
According to SofaScore, he didn’t have the most impressive game either, picking up a 6.5 player rating, losing the ball 16 times, missing one big chance, failing to find a teammate with three crosses, and making two fouls.
Even so, at such a young age, Greenwood is still learning his trade and Jesse Marsch evidently trusts him by using him in the new position while also handing out a big contract over the summer.
While it might not have been the best display, Greenwood was operating in an unusual position and so it seems as if this criticism of the youngster is a little harsh. Perhaps he’ll improve next time out in the middle of the park, or maybe Marsch will move him back further up the pitch.