The Spaniard has been Leeds United’s best player by quite some distance this season.
Leeds United have signed an absolute gem in £3million man Samu Saiz (Yorkshire Evening Post) but the Spaniard cannot do it all on his own, with too many of his Whites teammates under-performing in recent weeks.
As a result, Leeds’ once-promising campaign has faltered in alarming fashion, with seven defeats in their last eight matches and a drop from first to 10th in the Championship as a consequence.
Along with their elimination from the EFL Cup at the hands of Leicester City, it has been a month to forget for Leeds and their beleaguered manager Thomas Christiansen, but at least they have Saiz lighting up the dourest of displays.
The problem is, with the football coming thick and fast over the Christmas and New Year period, even their majestic play-maker could struggle, and that will be worrying for Leeds fans already wondering where their next win is coming from.
By the time Christmas rolls around, Leeds will be hoping to be back to winning ways, returning to the top six and ready to mount a sustained promotion push in the second half of the campaign.
The issue comes if their star player faces burnout, especially when he is one of the few Leeds players who can be relied upon for now.
It is up to his teammates improve their own game, but also up to Christiansen to ensure he does not rely too much on Saiz with games coming every two days as early as next month.
How the Leeds player copes under such pressure could go a long way to deciding what 2018 has in store at Elland Road.
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