Leeds teenager Jack Clarke has been praised by coach Jason Blunt.
General view inside Elland Road
Leeds United Under-23 coach Jason Blunt has told the club’s official website that he was impressed with Jack Clarke’s performance against Huddersfield Town on Monday.
The Leeds first team were in action on Saturday afternoon as they drew 1-1 at Ipswich Town, and the Under-23’s took to the field on Monday afternoon to face local rivals Huddersfield Town.
Leeds opened the scoring at their Thorp Arch training ground when Eoghan Stokes found the net, and they led throughout until Oliver Dyson struck an injury-time equaliser for Huddersfield.
Losing such a late goal will have been a major disappointment to coach Jason Blunt and his players, but there were a couple of bright spots from the game – particularly the inclusion of Jack Clarke.
The 16-year-old attacker was handed a start having featured for the Leeds Under-16’s and Under-18’s this season, and whilst he didn’t find the net, he received major praise after the game.
Speaking to the Leeds official website, coach Blunt admitted he was delighted to see Clarke in action, stating that the teenager did ‘extremely well’ considering he is still in school.
Leeds manager Garry Monk
Blunt added that he felt Clark tired towards the end of the game, but deserved the chance to play for the Under-23’s having impressed for the club’s other youth sides.
“I was delighted to see Jack out there playing, he is a young lad who is still at school, which bodes well for the future and I thought he did extremely well,” said Blunt. “He tired towards the end, but he showed some good touches, he has done well at Under-16s and recently stepped up to the Under-18s and he deserved a reward for doing well,” he added.
Many players have impressed having come up through the ranks at Elland Road, with the likes of Charlie Taylor, Ronaldo Vieira and Kalvin Phillips currently in Garry Monk’s first team, whilst players such as Sam Byram, James Milner, Fabian Delph, Lewis Cook and Aaron Lennon are all with Premier League clubs.
Clarke has a long way to go, but he’s catching the eye of coaches at the age of 16, and that certainly bodes well for the club and the player as he looks to make a name for himself.
Do you think Clarke has a bright future at Leeds?
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