Leeds United: Sky Sports pundit blown away by what ‘sensational’ Junior Firpo did v Middlesbrough
Leeds United defender Junior Firpo blew Andy Hinchliffe away with a “sensational” pass in the Championship clash with Middlesbrough.
Daniel Farke’s side climbed back into the automatic promotion places with a 4-3 win at the Riverside on Monday (22 April) thanks to goals from Crysencio Summervill, Patrick Bamford and Wilfried Gnonto.
While the Leeds striker earned plenty of praise for his makeshift finish to hand the Whites the lead in the opening 20 minutes, Sky Sports pundit Hinchcliffe was quick to heap praise on Firpo for his “wonderful” cross into the box.
Speaking on Sky Sports Football on Monday (22 April, 20:19) he said: “It’s a sensational ball in but where are the Middlesbrough defenders? You’ve got to be ready, when the left-back steps forward and pulls his foot back, he’s going to deliver a cross so you’ve got to deal with it.
“It’s whipped in, they’re appealing for offside. Bamford isn’t offside so deal with the ball in. Don’t stick your arm up and appeal and hope the flag goes up.
“It’s a wonderful ball in from Firpo, but defensively that is shocking from the Middlesbrough full-back and centre-half.”
Will Junior Firpo leave Leeds United in the summer transfer window?
Firpo is far from the perfect defender and he makes far too many mistakes defensively to be a reliable presence at the back, but the Dominican international can be so effective when he’s going forward with the ball at his feet.
His cross to find Bamford in the penalty area on Monday night was perfectly weighted to bounce between the defenders and goalkeeper to cause chaos in the box. Whilst the defence should have done more, the delivery was incredibly hard to deal with.
Whether or not Firpo will still be a Leeds United player come the start of next season remains to be seen and it does seem incredibly likely he’ll move on in the summer, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have something to offer now.
Hopefully, the left-back can finish the season strongly as Leeds are now well and truly back in the battle at the top of the Championship. It won’t be easy, but an immediate return to the Premier League is possible.
In other Leeds United news, Liam Cooper could be set to sign a new contract after making a transfer admission
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