Pascal Struijk indebted to Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa
Leeds United defender Pascal Struijk has shared his admiration for Marcelo Bielsa saying the Argentine has played a massive role in shaping up his career.
The 22-year-old joined Leeds from Ajax in 2018. He initially joined the academy ranks but was quickly fast-tracked into the senior team in the last few seasons.
The Dutch defender played as a centre-back and also as a defensive holding midfielder, but he mainly impressed playing at the back.
He featured in 27 league games last term and excelled under pressure in the absence of key senior players from time to time.
Struijk picked up an unfortunate red card following his tackle on Liverpool youngster Harvey Elliot. Now that his suspension period is over, he will be hoping to play regularly now.
The young defender has paid tribute to the Argentine boss saying he has played a key role in shaping up his career.
“He has improved me in every aspect of the game: weight-wise, physicality-wise, reading the game and passing. Basically everything,” Struijk said as quoted by the Yorkshire Evening Post.
“He’s shown me a different side of the game, such as usually zonally marking players and you would, say, go left or right. It’s a bit different here where we sometimes go man-for-man.
“We’re working on both ways now so that man-for-man gives you the ability to go one-v-one. I can win the duel instead of when you go out wide you’re not really sure you’re going to win your duel. I am now.”
Bright future
Bielsa is a world-class manager and he has left a great impression on so many players and managers over the years.
Kalvin Phillips has said time and again that he would have been nowhere without Bielsa today, while the likes of Mauricio Pochettino and Pep Guardiola consider him as an idol figure.
Struijk is also full of admiration and he has revealed how influential the Argentine boss has been in helping him mature as a player.
The Dutch defender is a fantastic young talent and he was absolutely brilliant in some of the games he played last season. The more he plays and focus on the tactical side of his game, the better he will become.
He has a contract at the club until 2024, and Leeds fans can expect him to get better with age and experience.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites are set to splash out on transfer fees in the ‘coming months’ amid.