Credit: Imago

Richie Mills

Tue 17 March 2026 10:40, UK

Troy Deeney has picked Leeds United defender Jaka Bijol in his Premier League Team of the Week.

Leeds maintained their three-point lead over the relegation zone with a goalless draw against Crystal Palace on Sunday.

It proved to be a case of what might have been after Dominic Calvert-Lewin missed a first-half penalty; however, Gabriel Gudmundsson was controversially sent off just before the break.

Daniel Farke’s team manfully held on for a stalemate at Selhurst Park, although Palace didn’t force goalkeeper Karl Darlow into a single save.

Now, ex-Watford striker Deeney has singled out Leeds star Bijol for his defensive contributions against Oliver Glasner’s men, although one of his teammates may have been more deserving of such praise.

Troy Deeney may have got Leeds pick wrong

Following the latest round of Premier League fixtures, former striker Deeney has put Bijol in a Team of the Week with the likes of 16-year-old Max Dowman of Arsenal, Liverpool’s Rio Ngumoha and Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes.

Bijol returned to the Leeds starting XI after dropping to the bench for the defeats to Manchester City and Sunderland in the Premier League.

And the centre-back largely proved a safe pair of hands against Palace alongside Pascal Struijk and Joe Rodon at the heart of Leeds’ defence.

However, he was, perhaps, fortunate not to receive a second yellow shortly before the break, and he won just one of his five aerial duels. Despite that, Deeney has sung his praises.

He wrote in his BBC Sport column: “Leeds went down to 10 men, and he headed every ball and organised everything. He received a yellow card and still managed to be aggressive while making sure not to be sent off.”

Bijol also won two out of his four tackles, had an 80 per cent pass accuracy rate, and made one interception, too. He was, though, arguably outshone by teammate Rodon.

Joe Rodon Leeds’ shining star at Crystal Palace

Indeed, Rodon was voted Leeds’ Player of the Match, with the Welsh international earning a Sofascore rating of 7.2.

While he made 11 defensive contributions to Bijol’s 18, Rodon won five of his seven aerial duels and two of his three ground duels. Incidentally, Ethan Ampadu also impressed for Leeds, with the skipper also a good contender for the Player of the Match award.

Former Tottenham man Rodon also made 10 clearances and one recovery, in addition to getting forward at every opportunity and dribbling past one player.

Rodon hasn’t been at his best in recent weeks, with a growing number of Leeds fans criticising his performances.

But the 28-year-old’s commitment to the cause cannot be questioned after his latest outing for Farke’s side against Palace.

Leeds will need him in this kind of form for the rest of the season as they bid to stay in the Premier League.