Leeds United have been handed a huge boost ahead of their Premier League meeting with Crystal Palace on Sunday.
What’s the latest?
That’s according to Richard Cawley, who revealed in a recent article for the London News Online that, after missing Palace’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea last weekend, Joachim Andersen looks set to once again miss out against the Whites, with the centre-back being yet to recover from a calf injury picked up last Friday.
Huge boost
Considering just how important a part of the Palace side Andersen has become since his €27m (£23.5m) move to Selhurst Park this summer, the news that the 27-year-old is now set to miss Sunday’s meeting is sure to come as a huge boost to Jesse Marsch.
Indeed, over his six Premier League appearances so far this season, the £26m-rated defender has been a rock at the back, helping the Eagles keep one clean sheet, in addition to making an average of 1.7 tackles, 1.5 interceptions, 9.8 clearances and winning 6.0 duels – at a success rate of 71% – per game.
The £97k-per-week talent has also impressed going forwards, scoring one goal and creating one big chance, as well as enjoying an average of 77.8 touches of the ball, making 47.3 passes – at a success rate of 81% – finding his man with 7.0 long balls and completing 0.7 key passes per fixture.
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These returns have seen the 19-cap Denmark international average a rather remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.38, not only ranking him as Patrick Vieira’s best performer in the league but also as the second-best centre-back – behind only Thiago Silva – and the 17th-best player overall in the top flight of English football as a whole so far this season.
As such, with Andersen being a huge threat in both penalty areas, it is clear to see that the absence of the defender will come as a huge boost to Marsch’s chances of returning to Elland Road with all three points in tow – a result that the Whites desperately need having now gone four games without a win.