I was wondering what the situation at left-back might be for us the new season, with the speculation surrounding the future of Junior Firpo and, even more so since his departure to Real Betis, following the expiry of his contract.
There had been speculation for a number of weeks about the potential arrival of Sweden international Gabriel Gudmonsson from Ligue 1 club Lille and following his successful medical, the 26-year-old is now a Leeds United player for £10 million, which is decent value – though he did have just one year left on his contract.
And, I think we’ve got ourselves a real coup here. So far, we’ve been smart in the transfer window since our arrival back to the Premier League, and this has continued with Daniel Farke and the recruitment team bringing Gudmondsson through the door on a four-year deal.
Defence A Priority This Season
So far, despite the fact we’re crying out for attacking reinforcements, we have concentrated our efforts on solidifying our defence and we’ve done this with some very smart signings – there’s a bit of a theme here as well.
Both Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw have arrived at centre-back for a combined £20 million (£15 million for the former), with both of them standing at 6ft 3ins. We’ve continued this trend here, with Gudmondsson standing at a shade under 6ft (5ft 11ins) overall. For a full-back, this is still considered tall.
Gudmondsson was one of the most consistent left-backs in Ligue 1 last season as well up against some tricky players. It also gives me confidence that his defensive game is strong and this can work in our favour, especially considering he will be going up against the likes’ of Bukayo Saka, Mohamed Salah and whoever Manchester City choose to deploy against us.
What Can We Expect From Gudmondsson?
Last time in the Premier League, we were considerably exposed – especially due to the way we played – most of our squad were more attack-minded and we got caught out frequently – especially out wide.
I think Gudmondsson brings a much more defensive mentality and his statistics from last season tell somewhat of a tale about what we can expect from the Swede.
| Appearances/Minutes | 27 appearances, 1670 minutes |
|---|---|
| Goals/Assists | 2/1 in Ligue 1 |
| Tackles/Interceptions | 8/0 |
| Recoveries | 23 (2.3/match) |
| Pass Accuracy | 0.821 |
| Progressive Distance Passing | 3879 metres |
| Key Passes | 16 |
| Dribbles | 14 |
| Average Distance/Match | 5.5km |
| Discipline | 0 (7 fouls) |
His recovery game is strong, which up against some of the best wingers in the world, will be needed. Gudmondsson also adds aerial strength for us, especially in both penalty areas; in-keeping with our current transfer policy over the last couple of weeks.
While Firpo was great for us over the last two seasons, I think he found his level in the Championship – proving to be the best in the league, though, based on his time in the top flight last time, I would have been concerned. Certainly, his attacking game is great, though I don’t think his defensive abilities would have filled me with confidence for the coming season.
