‘I keep talking to him’: Marsch says one Leeds player keeps getting his positioning wrong, wants him to change

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Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch has urged Raphinha to improve his positioning following his side’s 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace last night.

The Whites made the trip to South London for a hugely difficult game. Palace are now a different team under Patrick Vieira, especially at home – just ask Arsenal.

Marsch’s side rode their luck at times. The Eagles had plenty of opportunities to take the lead, but Leeds somehow managed to stay in the game and picked up a point.

Palace will definitely feel hard done by as they played well last night, but Leeds fans won’t care one bit.

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Jesse Marsch: I keep talking to Raphinha about his positioning

It’s not very often that a team can limit Raphinha to just one shot at goal throughout 90 minutes. Palace did exactly that and that’s one of the biggest reasons why Leeds didn’t look as threatening as they otherwise would’ve.

Marsch was asked about the Brazilian after the game and he claimed that Raphinha and a few of his teammates fall back into old habits at times. He wants them to be more positionally smart, especially the ex-Rennes man, who often drifts out too wide.

The Leeds boss said on Sky Sports right after the game: “I keep talking to him that he could be inside more because whether it’s second balls or little moments in build-up where we could find him in diagonal positions, he’s sometimes too wide, but it’s his natural instincts.

“They are trying but sometimes they fall back to old habits. But they are pushing every day to try and adapt.”

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Raphinha’s at his absolute best when he starts out wide, drives past players into the box and unleashes a shot on goal He has done that on numerous occasions in a Leeds shirt and he has been a joy to watch.

However, Marsch definitely has a point.

If Raphinha positions himself in a more-inside role, he will have a chance to have an impact on the game through central areas. This will also give Leeds’ right-back a ton of space to overlap, which would add another dimension to their attack.

It will be interesting to see how Raphinha will improve in the coming days.

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