Mateusz Klich showed Leeds United fans why they signed him in the EFL Cup – and then promptly had a nightmare at Cardiff City.
Mateusz Klich took a while to get going at Leeds United after missing most of pre-season through injury. However, the summer signing belatedly showed supporters what he’s all about with an efficient performance in the centre of the park in last week’s EFL Cup win against Premier League Burnley.
A neat and tidy operator blessed with impressive distribution, the former FC Twente metronome stood out against The Clarets and demonstrated exactly why Leeds hand-picked him to strengthen their central midfield this season.
However, his performance against Cardiff City on Tuesday night was as bad as his display versus Burnley was good. Thrown into the deep end against Neil Warnock’s in-form side for his first Championship start, his untimely slip midway through the first half gifted Cardiff an opener through Kenneth Zohore.
And, with Leeds three goals and a man down, the Polish international was put out of his misery with around 20 minutes to go, the more combative Ronaldo Vieira coming on in his place.
Based on that one 67 minute performance in South Wales, it is initially difficult to see what Klich brings to Leeds’ midfield. He lacks the aggressive edge of Vieira, Kalvin Phillips’ trademark ability to surge into the box or the creativity of a Pablo Hernandez or Samu Saiz.
That performance against Burnley promised much but, in the fast pace and ruthless Championship environment, Klich certainly has a long way to go before he is up to speed.
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