Brenden Aaronson loan form for Union Berlin proves why Leeds United are better off without him
The form of Brenden Aaronson with Union Berlin proves why Leeds United are better off without the midfielder this season.
The US international joined the Bundesliga side in July on a season-long loan deal that includes an option to make the move permanent at the end of the campaign.
But after making the switch to Germany, the 22-year-old hasn’t enjoyed the best of starts in the capital despite only making three appearances for the club.
Aaronson joined the Whites last summer from Red Bull Salzburg for a reported £24.7million after signing a five-year deal at Elland Road.
The midfielder had been earmarked as one the biggest talents coming out of America, with Leeds tracking him for a number of months before securing his signature.
He arrived at the club on the back of a successful season with the Austrian side, having scored six goals and laid on 10 assists as he helped the club record the league title and the Austrian Cup for the second straight season.
But Aaronson was unable to take that form into his time in West Yorkshire after scoring just one goal and registering three assists in 40 appearances last season.
Despite being a near-ever-represent in the Premier League – playing in 36 games across the campaign – he was unable to prevent the club from being relegated to the Championship.
The attacking midfielder then decided that he wanted to leave Elland Road to play at a higher level after it emerged that he had an exit clause in his contract, which Union Berlin decided to activate.
But if his early form with the German side is anything to go by, they are probably wishing that is a commitment they didn’t decide to make.
The American has so far played in three matches for Union since making his debut in the 4-0 DFB-Pokal victory over Astoria Walldorf in August.
But he has failed to impress in his first two Bundesliga games, having been sent off in his latest outing just 21 minutes into the game against Darmstadt.
They did, however, still manage to win the match 4-1 without the midfielder despite playing for almost 70 minutes with 10 men.
The stats don’t make for pretty reading, either, as he has so far failed to have a single shot on goal after registering an average of just 15 touches for the side [SofaScore].
His passing accuracy is down at just 62 per cent after he hasn’t made a single key pass, while his completion rate in his own half is at a lowly 58 per cent.
The midfielder has come out on top in only 29 per cent of the duels he has been involved in and he has lost possession on 5.5 occasions a game.
While it is still early days for Aaronson at Union, his start to the season and his willingness to leave the Whites shows why they are better off without him as they look to challenge for promotion back to the Premier League.
In other Leeds United news, one player could still have 11 days to secure a move away from Elland Road.