Journalist Beren Cross has outlined his concern over Marc Roca and his tackling in the middle of the park for Leeds United.
The Spaniard joined the Whites in a £10m transfer for Bayern Munich this summer and has already established himself as a key player in the team.
Indeed, he was involved from the start as Leeds cruised to an impressive win over Chelsea in the Premier League. Goals from Brenden Aaronson, Rodrigo and Jack Harrison sealed the 3-0 victory.
Despite the obvious delight over the win, while talking on a LeedsLive Facebook stream, Cross did suggest that he had some concerns over Roca’s tackling ability.
He said: “He tackles like we tackle. He’s all heart and blood and thunder and doesn’t quite get the timing right all the time.”
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Interestingly enough, Cross seemed to allude to this in his player ratings after the game, as he said of Roca: “Not quite as many successful tackles as [Tyler] Adams, but just as committed. Brought control. Never allowed the Chelsea pairing a moment’s peace. Brought composure and leadership at times too.”
According to stats recorded by SofaScore, the former Bayern man has managed to complete an average of 2.7 tackles per game in his three Premier League outings so far (only Pascal Struijk and Tyler Adams have more) and wins 54% of his ground duels, with the likes of Struijk (62%) also beating him in this area.
And so it seems as though he certainly is committed and keen to try and win the ball in the middle of the park, but perhaps his tackling will be something to keep an eye on in the coming weeks – with Cross potentially spotting a flaw in his game.