‘I know he didn’t start’: Sky pundit claims ‘special’ Leeds ace even more important now

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Darren Bent has suggested on the Football Show on Sky Sports (20/10/20 at 10:10 am) that the ‘special’ Pablo Hernandez is now even more important to Leeds United.

The Whites suffered a 1-0 defeat against Wolves on Monday night, with the away side happy to sit back and absorb the pressure in the first-half before they punished their opponents late on.

Hernandez, who has just returned from a knock, started from the bench for Marcelo Bielsa but he wasn’t able to make a difference for the 15 minutes he was on the pitch for.

Bent touched upon the high intensity in which Leeds play and how most teams won’t be able to cope with them, so that will lead to opposing sides sitting back more and that’s where the ‘magic’ of Hernandez comes into play.

“I think that’s where Hernandez is important for them,” Bent told Sky Sports. “They are going to come up against teams Leeds [who will sit back] because I don’t think there are many teams that can match their intensity.

“But I think there will be times where, like against Wolves, where they [opposing teams] cannot go toe to toe with them. You cannot match their intensity levels or they will run us off the pitch. So, that’s where they will sit in and defend.

“That’s where players like Pablo Hernandez are so important. I know he didn’t start [against Wolves] but he sits in the little pockets. He has that X-Factor. Something a little different and something special.

“We saw it last season when games were tight for Leeds and he would do something off-the-cuff. Something a little bit magical and that would open up defences.”

There’s no doubt that Hernandez is an easy-on-the-eye player and someone who moves across the pitch with such grace and ease.

In this hectic, gung-ho, 100 miles per hour team, Hernandez can seemingly play at his own pace and still run the game from the middle of the park.

But it’s his vision, technical ability and the ease in which he can pick out a pass which stands out, and whilst he hasn’t been able to showcase it yet because of injury, he will no doubt work his magic for Leeds as the season progresses.