YouTuber Joe Wainman has taken aim at Leeds United striker Rodrigo after his display in their 1-0 defeat in the Premier League this weekend.
Leeds’ three-game unbeaten run to start the season came to an end, with Pascal Groß‘s second-half goal enough to secure a slender victory in what was a rather blunt display from the West Yorkshire club.
The loss against Brighton & Hove Albion comes after they thrashed Chelsea 3-0, making their performance in front of goal all the more frustrating.
The result shouldn’t taint what has been a solid start to the season, however, it could leave Jesse Marsch questioning parts of his squad as the end of the summer transfer window approaches.
Wainman certainly had some questions of the squad, particularly when it came to Rodrigo. Speaking on the JustJoe Football Show, he said: “We needed someone like a Danny Welbeck today, because Leeds United couldn’t get out, Brighton wouldn’t let us out, and we couldn’t make the ball stick.
“And when balls fell to our striker – and yes, he is in hot form, but he was trying shots from every which way and when. Like, it was just really really poor.”
TIF Thoughts on Rodrigo…
We have to say, given the fact that Rodrigo has scored four goals in four Premier League games so far this season, Wainman’s verdict is a harsh one after just one defeat. The striker has more than proved his ability to lead the line this season and has done enough to earn the trust of the fans, in our view.
But it was not a performance he will want to remember, with just 40 touches throughout the game – only Dan James recorded fewer out of Leeds’ starting XI – losing the ball 10 times and only managing to provide a 71% pass success rate (via SofaScore).
Wainman has already shared his thoughts on Rodrigo’s impressive start to the campaign, feeling some fans may be getting too far ahead of themselves:
He tweeted earlier this month: “Mate, I’ll be real. If Sini was fit, Rodrigo wouldn’t have even started the season, but he scores 3 goals and he’s the second coming.”
Of course, we are still early in the season, but Marsch may well be crying out for another forward before the transfer window slams shut due to the injuries suffered up top already this term.
Up next for the Whites is the visit of Everton in what could be an indication of what is to come for both clubs come the end of the current campaign.
Don’t always agree with Joe but on this he has been spot on. Rodrigo James and Harrison might as well stayed at home for all the input they put in
I do tend to agree. Rodrigo always shoots on sight and generally not very well, if he only learned to play as part of a team and learns seemingly the new concept of passing the ball to a teammate we would be a much better team and HE would benefit from the change and become a real asset to any team he played for