Adam Forshaw admits Leeds players laughed when they signed Ben White

Add as preferred source on Google

Adam Forshaw has heaped praise on Leeds United defender Ben White for his immense qualities, but admitted that a lot of the squad laughed at first when he joined on loan in the summer.

White moved to Elland Road on a season-long loan from Premier League side Brighton and he was a fairly unknown talent.

But the centre-back has been one of the outstanding defenders in the entire Championship so far and looks destined to play at the top level.

The 22-year-old has played every minute in the league for Marcelo Bielsa’s side this campaign and has taken no time to settle.

He’s been an integral part of a team that have seven clean sheets in 14 league games, as he’s a real leader at the back with the way he goes about his defensive work.

The Englishman has rarely been flustered one-on-one due to his intelligence to read the play, while he’s strong in possession too and can hit a pinpoint long pass.

Forshaw explained that several Leeds players joked when they discovered they were signing an unknown Brighton defender, but nobody is laughing now at White and he’s waxed lyrical about him.

“The lads laughed because to be honest when we realised we were signing him we were like ‘who is he?’, and we’ll tell him that now,” Forshaw told TalkingShutt.

“He is unbelievable. He is a John Stones type, hasn’t shown any sign of making a mistake yet. He hasn’t put a foot wrong. So cool on the ball and clever. Might not be the most physical centre-back, but he’s just clever. He looks a top, top player and we’re lucky to have him.”

TBR’s View:

White has received praise from every angle this season and he deserves it following his commanding performances.

The Yorkshire club have a special talent on their hands that looks effortless in defence and they need to make the most of him before his return to Brighton, where he’s good enough to make an impact for them.

Leeds have defensively looked fairly switched on this campaign and Bielsa just needs to address the problems going forward, where they would surely sit top of the Championship if they could take half their goalscoring chances.