Nottingham Forest and Leeds United clashed in a crucial Championship promotion match on Saturday evening.
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has claimed that Leeds United ‘needed’ somebody like Nottingham Forest striker Lewis Grabban amid their striker problems this season.
Speaking to Sky Sports Football (08/02/2020 at 17:20 pm), prior to Leeds’ clash at Forest, Hasselbaink praised Grabban, 32, and thinks he is a player who would have worked well alongside Patrick Bamford, as he described him as ‘very calm’ and someone who isn’t ‘moody’.
“He is very calm in front of the goal and that’s what you need,” Hasselbaink told Sky Sports. “He’s not moody. He waits. And when he gets them [the chances] he knows where the back of the net is.
“I like him a lot, and for me, Leeds needed somebody with Bamford like that.”
The striker issue at Leeds has been a talking point even since Marcelo Bielsa walked through the Elland Road doors and Bamford has to deal with a lot of criticism that has come his way.
On one hand, he gives so much to Leeds in regards to how Bielsa wants to play, especially off the ball, but it’s the chances he misses that frustrates the fans.
A player like Grabban is a typical poacher inside the penalty area and for season upon season in the second-tier, he has showcased what he is all about.
Whilst Grabban may not have the off-the-ball work rate of a Bamford, he certainly knows how to find the back of the net, score those simple goals. It’s a simple yet difficult quality that has evaded Bamford’s game.
Over the course of the season, Grabban has played 31 Championship games, scoring 16 goals and supplying one assist for his side [transfermarkt].
Bamford, on the other hand, has found the back of the net on 12 occasions from his 30 Championship matches despite playing for a more attack-minded team, who create more chances [transfermarkt].
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