Leeds United defender Robin Koch has told Bild that Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah and Manchester City maestro Kevin De Bruyne are the toughest duo he has had to play against.
Koch has faced the best players the Premier League has to offer over the past two seasons after moving to England in 2020. Marcelo Bielsa acquired the centre-half from SC Freiburg for an initial £11.5m, rising to £13m, after guiding the Elland Road outfit into the top-flight.
- WORLD CUP: ONE PLAYER TO WATCH FROM ALL 32 NATIONS AT QATAR
- WORLD CUP: TOURNAMENT RECORD OF FRANCE ICON ZINEDINE ZIDANE
Injuries have restricted Koch’s availability with Leeds but between Bielsa and his successor, Jesse Marsch, the 26-year-old has enjoyed 38 Premier League appearances. The eight-cap German international made his latest English top-flight outing against Wolves on Saturday.
Koch has now played against Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City, Aston Villa and Wolves the most often in the Premier League. He has met each team three times but is yet to beat the Red Devils or Gunners, whilst taking two wins over the Molineux natives so far.
Liverpool have played Leeds with Koch featuring just once, after the German anchored the Whites’ defence in a 4-3 defeat. He started the Elland Road natives’ first match back in the Premier League at Anfield in September 2020, as Salah scored a hat-trick past Illan Meslier.
Leeds star Koch hails Liverpool ace Salah and Manchester City star De Bruyne
Mohamed Salah left a devastating impression on Robin Koch as the Liverpool forward hit a hat-trick against Leeds United in September 2020. The Egyptian broke the deadlock with a penalty, put the Reds ahead at 3-2 and scored a second penalty in the 88th-minute to win.
Kevin De Bruyne also impressed Koch in the Belgian’s only outing against the Leeds star with Manchester City so far. The midfielder featured whilst the teams drew 1-1 in October 2020, while De Bruyne watched Koch’s two further outings against Man City on the bench.
De Bruyne did not influence Raheem Sterling’s goal at Elland Road, before Rodrigo struck a 59th-minute equaliser. But the Belgian struck the post and let an impression on Koch – who considers the Manchester City star and Liverpool’s Salah to be the Premier League’s best.
“If I had to pick two, I would name Salah and De Bruyne,” Koch stated. “For one simple reason: they are brutally difficult to defend against. They make life difficult for you as a defender every second.”
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
