MOT View: Arsenal made massive mistake in releasing young star – Bielsa has proved it
Such is the ferocious competitive nature of professional football, talented players slipping through the cracks is not a new phenomenon.
Antoine Griezmann and Alan Shearer are just two famous names that were told as youngsters that they lacked what is required to make it at the very top level, only for them to go on and enjoy incredibly successful careers.
And while Luke Ayling is perhaps not quite of that calibre, he is nonetheless a reminder of how persistence can pay off after being released from Arsenal in 2010 as a 19-year-old and joining Yeovil on a free.
Since arriving at Leeds United in 2016, the right-back has improved massively and has looked at home in the Premier League so far this season.
Able to score goals, provide assists, play an active role in possession and even fill in at centre-back, he is now a centrepiece of Marcelo Bielsa’s exciting Leeds side.
Asked about Ayling after he impressed at centre-back during the Whites’ 3-0 win against Aston Villa at Villa Park, the Argentine coach said (via Leeds Live): “He was quick, he was agile. He defended well, he headed well. He used the ball well and he transmitted serenity to the rest of the team.”
It is this serenity that was so impressive at Villa Park. Captaining the side, his defensive spacing was excellent, while his aerial prowess allowed him to adapt to a central role seamlessly.
His passing too was important, completing 37 successful passes and allowing Leeds to progress up the field with his raking long balls (via WhoScored). This season, only Liam Cooper and Robin Koch have attempted more passes than Ayling, while his one key pass per game shows his ability to create opportunities on a regular basis.
Of course, Leeds and Ayling himself are still in the early days of their Premier League journey. Maintaining such a level of form over a 38 game season is difficult and teams will be looking at Bielsa and his set up in order to plan their approach.
But six games in, Leeds and Ayling are certainly proving the doubters wrong. And Arsenal, in particular, may be starting to doubt that decision they made back in 2010 when they released him as a youth player.
In other Leeds United news, Bielsa gave debut to one Leeds player after admitting he didn’t know if he was ‘any good’