New Leeds United assistant Steve Thompson believes the club need to show defensive improvement.
Steve Thompson has begun work as Leeds United assistant boss under Neil Redfearn, and believes himself already familiar with the side.
Having left a role at Huddersfield Town as joint-first team coach, Thompson made comments upon arrival backing suggestions Leeds could seek to employ a new formation in certain circumstances.
Quizzed about the club’s weaknesses, he told BBC Radio Leeds: “I think they are very good going forward, but they have to be a little more solid at the back.
“They are vulnerable to the counter attack and they play really good attacking football, but sometimes in this division you’ve got to play a system that can grind a result out.”
| Season | Goals per game | Goals Conceded per game | Goals conceded on counter attacks per game | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leeds | 2014-2015 | 1.14 | 1.48 | 0.05 |
| Championship Average | 2014-2015 | 1.31 | 1.31 | 0.03 |
Leeds’ goals conceded per game is worse than the Championship average, but unfortunately their attacking is also below par for the season too.
While the number of goals conceded on the counter attack form a tiny amount, they are also on the wrong side of the average for the division.
Leeds lost their last away game 4-1 to Ipswich Town, and have picked up only five points of their 23 total on their travels this season.
After the last loss, Redfearn indicated it may be time to look at playing a more defensive system, and hearing his new assistant suggest publicly ahead of the Nottingham Forest clash that playing more cautiously will be wise, only makes it more likely.
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