In the summer, Leeds United recruited 10 new players as they wanted to augment the squad ahead of their return to the Premier League.
The Whites spent over £100 million recruiting top players from leagues across Europe. These signings signalled that there would be increased competition for places in the squad. And it showed very early in the season when new center backs Jaka Bijol and Sebastian Bornauw were on the bench for long periods.
The duo had a lot of experience in top leagues, but had to wait for their chance as Daniel Farke preferred Joe Rodon and Pascal Struijk. But since then, the competition at the center back spot has been very tight.
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Jaka Bijol has yet to start a Premier League game for Leeds United since the Chelsea match, and Farke has yet to explain why. But the Leeds boss’ words in this week’s press conference suggests the Slovenian will be back in the lineup soon.
“I’m happy with all of my centre-backs. Jaka, for us, is a fantastic signing, a top player, a top character, someone with a captain’s pedigree from his personality, and he’s also a leader in the group.”
“He needed a bit of time in the beginning of the season, but then he had some outstanding performances, and then he was ruled out with injury. After coming back, it’s always tricky, you can be out for four, five, six weeks… You have to shake off the rust of the injury a little bit, but you can see him growing on the training pitch and against Norwich, he had a really good game. To have him back at his full fitness, Jaka is a key player for us.”
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Jaka Bijol must return to Leeds starting lineup
Leeds have missed Bijol’s aggressiveness and ball playing from the back; Farke has been using James Justin as the third center back in recent games but the results are not showing any positives. So now, it is time for the Leeds United boss to return to the familiar back three that saw the team go on a run in December. Bijol returning to the lineup will bring defensive solidity and allow the team to move forward. His importance in the team is very underrated – according to the numbers this season, when he plays, the team rarely loses compared to the other center backs in the squad.
| Player | Starts | Losses | Loss % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sebastiaan Bornauw | 4 | 0 | 0% |
| Jaka Bijol | 12 | 3 | 25% |
| Pascal Struijk | 25 | 10 | 40% |
| Joe Rodon | 27 | 12 | 44% |
