Crysencio Summerville makes honest Leeds United 'pressure' admission as key teammate 'connection' explained — YEP 23/5/24
By Kyle Newbould
The Dutch winger has been Leeds United’s talisman this
season and can lead them to the Premier League on Sunday.
Crysencio Summerville is relishing the challenge of being
Leeds United’s talisman going into Sunday’s Championship play-off final clash
against Southampton.
Summerville’s 29 goal contributions have played a major role
in Leeds coming within one win of a return to the Premier League, with the
22-year-old often relied upon to deliver in times of need. So often the winger
has been United’s man for the big occasions and an ability to consistently
produce earned him the Championship’s Player of the Season award ahead of some
impressive names.
Leeds supporters expected big seasons from the likes of
Georginio Rutter and Wilfried Gnonto but few predicted such a huge impact to
come from Summerville, who started just 12 Premier League games during last
year’s relegation. Amid the chaos of multiple exits and transfer requests last
summer, the Dutchman never agitated to move on and instead shifted focus to
cementing himself as a first-team start under Daniel Farke.
“I said to myself one of my goals was to be a key player for
Leeds United this season,” Summerville told LeedsLive of his reflections last
summer. “Some people call it pressure, but I just call it challenging myself. I
like that and I love to be important for the team and to carry a team in a good
way. Not only with goals and assists, but also through leadership on and off
the pitch.”
While emphasis this season has so often been about what
Summerville can do, the winger has benefitted massively from a team that
functions around him so smoothly. Rutter directly set up six of his goals
during the regular season - a tally bettered only by Leif Davis and Conor
Chaplin of Ipswich Town - while Junior Firpo has been a constant option on the
left-hand side.
It was Firpo who bagged the assist on Thursday as Leeds put
Norwich City to the sword with a thumping 4-0 play-off semi-final second-leg
win, the left-back reacting quickest as Angus Gunn palmed out Gnonto’s effort
before cutting the ball back to Summerville. It’s that kind of telepathy that
has seen the left-sided pair dovetail so well this season.
“Through the season our connection grew a lot,” Summerville
added of his relationship with Firpo. “I love to play with Junior on the left
and we feel each other like water. I can only say it’s been good. Normally,
some people could take a shot, but he had a look, saw me and thought ‘Okay,
Cree is in a better position’ so he played me the ball.
“It’s always good to have a good team and also a good
friendship in your team. As soon as [Rutter and Gnonto] came in, I saw them as
my brothers. Our friendship has grown a lot this season, so I’m very happy to
play with them. You can tell on the pitch.”
All four of Summerville, Firpo, Rutter and Gnonto will
likely start on Sunday and form the bulk of United’s attacking threat. But it
will no doubt be the former who makes the decisive action - as he has done so
often this season.