Do Leeds United miss Pontus Jansson on certain days? Noel Whelan believes so.
Noel Whelan has claimed that Leeds United are missing Pontus Jansson on days like today.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side lost 1-0 at Charlton Athletic to mean that the Whites have only won one of their last four games in all competitions.
Leeds aren’t conceding a lot of goals, having only shipped five all season in the Championship to give them the best defence in the division, but they are conceding silly goals and Charlton’s winner through Macauley Bonne was no different.
The Addicks took the lead through a corner which resulted in Bonne’s effort trickling into the net after nobody dealt with it, and Whelan believes that his former club are missing a dominant presence like Jansson in the United penalty area when it comes to defending set pieces.
He told BBC Radio Leeds: “We’ve got to be so much better from set pieces. We’re soft. It’s simple as that. I’ll give Jansson credit. The one thing he would do is clear the ball. He’d go and attack it.
“I think we’ve got a better defender in Ben White but when it comes to being dominant in and around those areas from set pieces, someone’s got to step up and get a first contact.”
Jansson joined Brentford in a £5.5 million deal this past summer and the fact that Leeds have the best defence in the division illustrates that they haven’t missed him.
But Whelan is right in saying that a no-nonsense figure like him is very much needed when there’s a loose ball is rolling around the box.
There’s no telling whether Bielsa’s side would’ve conceded if Jansson was playing, but there have been other goals this season that they might not have.
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