Cody Drameh has won the Football League World Fans’ Championship Player of the Month award for March.
Leeds’ 20-year-old right back has impressed since joining Cardiff on loan in January and has racked up 14 starts already.
Congratulations, Cody! 👏#CityAsOne https://t.co/G2QbDkwlmh
— Cardiff City FC (@CardiffCityFC) March 29, 2022
After playing just 128 minutes of senior football across three starts at Leeds, Drameh departed in January.
However, he has since featured for 1,247 minutes at Cardiff. This has allowed him to gain valuable experience, which will no doubt benefit his development.
Drameh featured four times for the Bluebirds in March and helped them to an unbeaten month, picking up three wins and a draw.
This run has moved Cardiff to 17th in the table and 13 points clear of the relegation zone with just eight games to play.
The defender has established himself as an important part of Cardiff’s backline and his performances helped his side keep two clean sheets and concede just twice in March.
Drameh’s tenacious defending has caught the eye in South Wales. The starlet is averaging 3.7 successful tackles per 90 in the Championship, and made 17 in March alone.
He is also averaging one interception and 1.9 clearances per 90 in a much improved defensive unit.
However, Drameh has also shown himself capable of contributing to the attack. He picked up an assist in Cardiff’s 2-1 win over Stoke City.
This was his third of the season in the second tier, after picking up assists against Blackpool and Peterborough.
This comes as no surprise considering Drameh has made 3.17 crosses and 0.8 key passes per 90 during his loan switch.
These are respectable numbers for a young defender and demonstrate his ability to get forward and support the attack.
Drameh will return to Elland Road at the end of the season but it remains to be seen what his future holds.
The Athletic’s Phil Hay recently claimed that “Leeds have a great crop of under-23s… but its hard not to feel that the past nine months have been a pointed lesson about depth and quality”.
The development of academy players can not come at the “expense of necessary senior recruitment”, he added.
Hay’s comments suggest Leeds will be looking for more experienced signings, rather than giving significant playing time to players like Drameh.
Despite this, Drameh’s performances will certainly have caught the eye in Yorkshire. Whether Drameh stays or looks for another temporary, or even permanent, switch this summer, there is no doubt Leeds have a talented player on their hands.
