Hugo Diaz was superb as Leeds United’s under-23s picked up another win on Monday.
It is more than 10 months since Hugo Diaz made his debut for Leeds United’s first-team. It currently remains his only appearance for the Whites’ senior side.
With Marcelo Bielsa opening the door for a number of under-23 starlets to make the step up this season, and Diaz turning 22 earlier this month, some may have wondered whether the Spaniard would get the chance to move up the ladder.
At centre-back, Diaz’s form has been fairly mixed and Aapo Halme’s recent promotion to the first-team was perhaps an ominous sign.
But after Leeds’s under-23 side beat Bolton at Elland Road on Monday, perhaps Whites fans got a glimpse of the path that could take Diaz into the first-team squad at some stage in the future.
Carlos Corberan made an inspired decision with the former Deportivo La Coruna youngster as he deployed him in the holding midfield role that has helped turn Kalvin Phillips into something of a talisman in the first-team.
Diaz took to the role superbly. He was obviously comfortable dropping into the defensive line, and showed the kind of composure on the ball that Leeds needed as he provided both of the assists in the 2-0 win.
His passes for the two goals were sublime and hinted that he has the vision to make that role his best position.
And with Bielsa lacking adequate cover for Phillips within the first-team – Adam Forshaw would arguably be better off playing further forward, despite his outstanding display against Derby County – Diaz could perhaps give the Leeds boss an option that he would not have expected.
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