Liam Bridcutt has hailed Leeds team-mate Chris Wood.
Leeds’ Chris Wood celebrates scoring against Birmingham City
Leeds United captain Liam Bridcutt has hailed the improvement of striker Chris Wood from last season to this season, when speaking to the Sky Sports EFL Weekly podcast.
Wood, 25, was seen as a big signing for former boss Uwe Rosler when Leeds forked out £3million (Yorkshire Evening Post) to snap him up from Premier League side Leicester City, where he was struggling for first-team football.
The New Zealand international struggled to live up to his price tag in his first season at Elland Road, as he scored 13 goals in 37 appearances, drawing criticism from fans for his performances.
Leeds signed Marcus Antonsson from Swedish side Kalmar last summer to compete with Wood, and that move – as well as the arrival of manager Garry Monk – appear to have jolted Wood into life.
The big striker has racked up 25 goals in just 39 appearances this season, sitting top of the Championship goalscoring charts with 22 goals to his name in the league.
Wood’s goalscoring exploits haven’t gone unnoticed, as ESPN reported in January that Premier League sides Sunderland and West Ham United were both keen on Wood, as were Chinese Super League club Tianjin Quanjian.
Wood stayed with Leeds and is now their big hope in their push for promotion to the Premier League, with team-mate and club captain Liam Bridcutt now praising him.
Liam Bridcutt Leeds United in action with Jack Payne of Huddersfield Town
Bridcutt hailed Wood for hitting back after criticism from fans last season, adding that he is a ‘great character’ in the squad, and the players look up to him as an experienced head – despite being just 25.
“All credit to Woodsy, he’s just knuckled down this season and started doing what he does best – scoring goals,” said Bridcutt. “When I first came in last season on loan, he was under a difficult patch, and there were a lot of fans on his back, but to be fair to the boy, he’s come out fighting and shown them what he can do, and all credit to Chris. He’s helped us massively in the last five or six months now, and he’s been scoring some goals. He’s the top goalscorer in the Championship at the minute, and hopefully that can continue.”
“He’s always been a confident boy, but obviously when you’re scoring goals, it helps massively. He’s a great character to have around the team, and even at his young age, he’s an experienced head – a lot of the boys look up to him,” he added.
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