Pascal Struijk: The future of Leeds United’s backline

When an injury-induced absence meant that Liam Cooper couldn’t be present for Leeds’ first game back in the Premier League, fans were sceptical about the man who replaced him.

At the time, Ben White had returned to Brighton and Gaetano Berardi had a long-term injury. Combine this with the missing Cooper, and the fact that Diego Llorente hadn’t signed at the time, it meant that Leeds United had only two fit, senior centre-backs on the books; new signing Robin Koch, and youngster Pascal Struijk.

On the day of Leeds’ first Premier League game since their 2004 relegation, Struijk had only five first team appearances to his name. Further from this, Struijk had only completed two full 90-minute games, which were both dead rubber ties at the end of Leeds’ Championship title winning season.

Whilst he managed two solid performances in those final games of the season, the general scepticism from fans stemmed from his second ever appearance for Leeds, their home tie against Cardiff City in December 2019.

Struijk came on late in the game. Leeds held a 3-0 lead at half-time, but the Bluebirds had reduced the deficit to only one goal at the time of Struijk’s introduction. He may have only played six minutes, but in those minutes, Struijk would make an error that would eventually lead to Robert Glatzel equalising the game for Cardiff.

With that being the lasting impression amongst fans, seeing his name in the starting line-up for Leeds’ first game of the 2020/21 season caught most by surprise. He had certainly improved in the limited appearances he had made since, but anxiety levels were high as the 21-year-old lined up for what was only his third career start, against defending champions Liverpool, away at Anfield.

Whilst Leeds may have lost the game 4-3, Struijk certainly performed better than most anticipated. Bielsa has maintained faith in the young centre-back, and his self-belief has only grown as the season has gone on.

Now, just a mere handful of games away from the conclusion of the season, Struijk’s ability has caused something of an issue at centre-back for Leeds. By the end of the summer transfer window, Leeds had Koch and Diego Llorente amongst the ranks, as well as captain Liam Cooper. It was understandable to believe that Struijk would be the fourth choice of the four.

Injuries to Koch and Llorente over different parts of the season have allowed Struijk to maintain relative consistency as a starting player. As such, Struijk has developed massively in his first ever Premier League season, in no small part due to his versatility, and it is this development that makes you question how soon it will be before he becomes a guaranteed starter.

When needed, Struijk has advanced into the CDM role for Leeds. Of course, he has never seemed as comfortable as Phillips has, but it is an entirely new position for the natural defender. As the season has gone on, each appearance he has made in the midfield has bested the previous through noticeable improvements in confidence.

That being said, Struijk is certainly far stronger in his preferred position of centre-back. Left-footed, Struijk’s background at Ajax has clearly instilled a philosophy of comfort on the ball. He has played at both left and right centre-back, his two-footed nature benefiting whoever his is partnered with.

Outside of watching him play, this ambidextrous style is perhaps best evidenced in his passing numbers. Of the 57.83 passes Struijk attempts per game, 43.14 are with his left foot.

He still attempts 9.83 passes with his ‘weaker’ right foot, however, which only serves to support claims of his versatility. As said by Struijk himself, talking to Adam Pope, whilst he is understandably more comfortable on the left, he too noted “I haven’t found a big problem playing on the right”.

?️ "It feels more comfortable"

Leeds United defender Pascal Struijk is enjoying life back in the heart of the defence.

? ▶️ https://t.co/Ymecv36N0n#lufc pic.twitter.com/jsdgul5Ydt

— Adam Pope (@apopey) February 5, 2021

Struijk is averaging 136.53 yards of progressive carrying distance per game this season. As well as this, the Netherlands youth international averages 69.9 touches per 90. Of these, 41.67 are in the defensive third, whilst 28.73 are in the midfield third, which again serves to show his willingness to move forward with the ball.

Of course, sporadically operating at CDM will mean that he has to move further up-field with the ball than he would normally do at centre-back. Still, it is clear that Struijk embraces his ever-developing technical ability as a defender, an ability he is willing to showcase in each game he plays.

Be it from midfield or the heart of defence, Struijk’s comfort on the ball is a vital aspect of his play-style. His season heatmap helps show how willing the Belgian-born defender is to get forward, often carrying the ball out from the back.

It is too worth noticing here how symmetrical the heatmap is. It is perhaps the best visualisation of Struijk’s claims about his comfort on either side of the pitch. It’s one thing to make the claim, it’s another to actually showcase it.

Wherever he plays on the pitch, Struijk can boast a seriously impressive record of defensive numbers.
When delving into his scouting report, Struijk’s figures on his defensive ability are a sea of green, that nicely fit him amongst some of Europe’s best.

His most noticeable statistics are his pressures. Before looking at those, it first seems fair to note his more ‘generic’ defensive stats, his tackles and interceptions. Sat at 2.18 and 1.69 per game, respectively, the 21-year-old has been able to establish himself as an unafraid, more than capable centre-back.

His pressures however are perhaps his most impressive figures. Again, it feels right to question if his play at CDM may serve to somewhat elevate this numbers. To counter this, Struijk has only played eight league games as a defensive midfielder in his time at Leeds (according to Transfermarkt). He has only completed 90 minutes as a CDM four times, and of these games, two were those final, meaningless ties of the 2019/20 Championship season.

Therefore, it feels fair to conclude that his time at CDM has made a minimal impact on his numbers.
Averaging 16.06 pressures per game means that Struijk is seeded in the top 1% of European centre-backs. The same can be said for the number of successful pressures he completes (5.02), as well how many he attempts in the midfield third (6.77). Also, his 8.41 defensive third pressures rank him amongst the top 2% in Europe.

It also only seems right to quickly touch on the aerial impact Struijk has for Leeds. Defensively, all of Leeds’ centre-backs seem more than capable to win their fair share of aerial duels. When it comes to set pieces however, attacking and defending, Leeds have a tendency to falter, something that has seemed particularly true under Bielsa.

Struijk, however, brings a reassured calm when dealing with set-pieces. Defensively, he seems to win the majority of his battles. Offensively, be it through a free-kick or a corner, he is constantly looking to pose a threat.

He could have had a hat-trick of headers when Leeds hosted Crystal Palace in February, and his header against Arsenal in the following game was one of the best from a Leeds defender in recent memory (not that there’s many to choose from, but you understand the point).

Struijk seems to be almost tailor-made for the system Bielsa uses. His high physicality is clear in how often he pressures his opposition, and his versatility will only bolster his manager’s expectations of him.

As well as this, it is worth noting that, at the very base of everything, Struijk is a very, very talented footballer. Still only 21, it seems as though he will be part of the long-term future of Leeds United, whilst also serving to assist them in their current endeavours.

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