Daniel Farke to wrap Struijk up in cotton wool to secure Leeds United promotion
Daniel Farke will need to wrap Pascal Struijk up in cotton wool to ensure his availability for the whole season after statistics emerged to show just how important he is for Leeds United in their promotion push.
The 25-year-old has been a mainstay in the Leeds side this season having played and started all of their 19 games so far, as well as scoring two goals.
Statistics shared by DataMB on X show that Struijk is first in the Championship for passes, accurate passes, forward passes and passes to the final third, which makes him the highest-performing centre-back in the league this season.
With this in mind, ensuring his fitness for the rest of this campaign is crucial for Farke, especially after the 25-year-old saw his season curtailed last term as he missed the second half of the campaign due to a groin injury.
Pascal Struijk will be essential to promotion push at Leeds United
Farke clearly knows the level of player he has on his hands in Struijk and it is why he has opted to include him in every game during the campaign so far, as well as him being vice-captain in the team.
However, there will surely be some worries too after the 25-year-old had to miss the second half of last season because of injury, which led to Ethan Ampadu filling in for him in the back line and moving out of his preferred central midfield role.
As the push for a return to the Premier League has stepped up this term with the Whites currently one point off the top spot, having their best players available could really make all the difference in them achieving their aims this time round.
Struijk’s availability as the standout centre-back in the entirety of the Championship means that Farke will be doing all he can to ensure the fitness of his player so he can have an impact up until the end of the campaign.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites could offload this 24-year-old with the perfect opportunity to do so.
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