Joel Piroe doubled his tally for away goals on Thursday night when he scored a brace in Leeds United’s 2-0 win over Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium. There were question marks over his place in the team coming into the game as his performances on the road this season ahead of Boxing Day did little to inspire any confidence in the Leeds fans. However, he stood up to the challenge on a misty evening at Stoke and lifted Leeds to the top of the Championship standings.
Leeds and Piroe’s form away from home was under the scanner ahead of their visit to the bet365 Stadium on Boxing Day on Thursday night.
The Whites only had three wins in ten on the road in the Championship and only two of Piroe’s seven goals in the league until his visit to Stoke came away from home.
Daniel Farke kept his faith in the forward at Stoke and repaid with two big goals for the Whites as they moved to the top of the Championship table on Thursday night.
Piroe has been the number one striker at Leeds this season despite criticism of his performances but at Stoke, he fired back at some of his detractors with his overall performance and the goals.
There is fierce debate on whether Leeds need to sign a forward in the winter window but the Dutchman showed that if Leeds play the kind of football that complements his attributes, he is the perfect striker for the team.
Joel Piroe is not a traditional number 9
The 25-year-old striker has started 14 Championship games this season and is more or less the first-choice striker for Farke ahead of either Mateo Joseph or Patrick Bamford.
The Dutchman has been criticised this season for drifting in and out of the game and despite Leeds being the top scorers in the league this season, Piroe’s lack of regular goals has come under the scanner.
Piroe is not a traditional number 9 amidst a Championship where most top teams have a traditional striker and that increases the scrutiny on his performances.
The Dutchman remains a dangerous finisher inside the box but he prefers to get involved in the build-up rather than play on the shoulder of the last defender.
Piroe looks very good when he has pacey wingers and number 8s who are prepared to run beyond for him to thread the balls behind the opposition’s defence.
He had that in Daniel James and Manor Solomon on the wide areas at Stoke and it allowed him to play his natural game where he arrives late inside the box.
While his first goal was a masterclass in finishing off a chance, the second was a good example of how good he can be in the air when the wingers are prepared to put those crosses in for him to meet inside the box.
The Whites need more of this from the Dutchman
The two goals at Stoke took Piroe’s tally to nine goals in the Championship this season and he is the top scorer in the Leeds squad. He is just one goal behind Josh Maja who is the second-highest scorer in the league.
However, Joel Piroe is a good six goals behind the Championship’s top scorer Borja Sainz and needs to keep his scoring boots on for the rest of the season.
The Dutchman has been helped by the fact that several of the Leeds players have been chipping in with goals and they are not completely dependent on him.
But Leeds will need him to produce more such performances as he did at Stoke. The race for automatic promotion is shaping up to be tight and the Whites will need their top players to step up.
Piroe showed at Stoke that when the team are playing to his strengths and the forward play is in tune, he remains a lethal striker in the Championship.
Leeds hope that the Dutchman carries the confidence from his showing at Stoke to the next few games as they look to consolidate their position at the summit of the league table.
