Jesse Marsch reveals thoughts on internal Leeds United battles as new faces disrupt status quo - YEP 22/7/22
Jesse Marsch’s summer signings have increased competition for places at Leeds United this coming season
By Joe Donnohue
Leeds have shipped out a handful of fringe players on loan
along with star men Raphinha and Kalvin Phillips this summer, but have
supplemented the squad with European experience aplenty.
Brenden Aaronson, Rasmus Kristensen, Tyler Adams, Luis
Sinisterra and Marc Roca all featured in European competition last season and
it is hoped they can replicate those levels of performance in the Premier
League this term.
Having brought in so many first-team players, competition
for places within Jesse Marsch’s squad has intensified.
Those who were previously shoo-ins to start the campaign at
Elland Road on the opening day are no longer guaranteed minutes.
Posed with the question of players vying for supremacy over
their peers, Marsch insisted there was less focus on ‘internal competition’
within his squad and greater attention paid to instilling a strong mentality
and identity of play.
"I think it's more about establishing our way of
playing, our mentality, continuing to push ourselves every day to get better
and better, than it is about internal competition,” he said.
"Obviously, that's [competition] always the case in
professional sports. Everyone has to earn their way every day. It's same for
managers. But I think that there's been really good work done by everybody and
excitement for the matches.”
Competition in the middle of the park seems the fiercest
with Mateusz Klich, Adam Forshaw, Tyler Adams and Marc Roca all jostling for
position at the base of Leeds’ midfield.
Polish international Klich doesn’t see increased competition
as necessarily a bad thing for his chances this season, though: “The last
couple of years I've played every game and at a time that I was really tired
playing international football and everything.
"I think it's going to be good to have rotations and
more players,” he said.
Such an influx of talent at Elland Road was always likely to
disrupt the status quo. Players such as Klich who featured each week may no
longer be afforded the benefit of the doubt with more options at Marsch’s
disposal.
