MOT View: Leeds ace puts in best performance yet in 5-0 thrashing of West Brom
Rodrigo enjoyed one his best nights in a Leeds United shirt as he scored in the Whites’ 5-0 win over West Brom on Tuesday.
The 29-year-old scored his side’s fourth just before half time after an own goal from Romaine Sawyers and strikes from Ezgjan Alioski and Jack Harrison gave the Whites a substantial lead.
Raphinha made it five in the second half as no one in purple had a bad night but Rodrigo really excelled.
According to Wyscout, the Spaniard managed to get 100% of his shots on target and he was a constant threat to the Albion defence all night.
From looking at his heatmap, you can see that he popped up all across the Leeds final third while trying to attack.
You can also see Rodrigo coming deep and helping the defence out on the rare occasions West Brom broke forward.
The stats show that compared to his season averages, Rodrigo showed a considerable improvement against the Baggies.
For example, according to Wyscout, 75% of Rodrigo’s attempted dribbles were successful against the Baggies while his average dribble success rate this season is only 61.5%.
This trend continues when you look at his passing stats as Rodrigo completed 86% of his passes at The Hawthorns which again is higher than his passing accuracy for the season which sits at 77.5%.
The 29-year-old also improved in his defensive duties as he won 56% of his total duels which is better than the 43.4% of duels that Rodrigo has been winning on average per 90 minutes this season.
Rodrigo also won 100% of his defensive duels as he showed that he can perform at both ends of the pitch.
Overall, 70% of Rodrigo’s total attempted actions against West Brom were successful which is an improvement on the 54.4% of successful actions that he usually registers per 90 minutes.
It is this kind of improvement that we need to see from Rodrigo as he adapts to life in the Premier League.
Of course, this should be taken with a pinch of salt as West Brom were dreadful and most Premier League players could enjoy a great 90 minutes against the Baggies.
Let’s hope that Rodrigo continues to improve at this pace so he can continue to be an asset for Marcelo Bielsa.
In other Leeds United news, Ian Wright and Micah Richards were blown away by this 24-year-old v WBA
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