Noel Whelan lauds Pablo Hernandez after Leeds’s win at Luton

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Noel Whelan has told BBC Radio Leeds (broadcast on 23/11; 17:20) what he particularly loves about Pablo Hernandez after Leeds United’s win away at Luton Town.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side have returned to the top two in the Championship. They beat the Hatters 2-1 at Kenilworth Road, with Matty Pearson scoring a stoppage-time own goal for the visitors.

The game saw Hernandez return to the starting lineup for the first time in more than two months. And unquestionably, there were glimpses of his quality as Leeds secured the three points.

As shown by Whoscored.com, Hernandez completed two successful challenges. And Ben White was the only player on the pitch who completed more passes than the Spaniard, who found a teammate 68 times.  Hernandez also completed four key passes. Only Izzy Brown contributed more.

And following the win, Whelan insisted that Hernandez deserves enormous credit for the way that he never shies away from the chance to get onto the ball.

“He’s massively important,” he told BBC Radio Leeds. “The one thing I love about Pablo Hernandez is that he never, ever hides. He always wants the ball. He wants the ball at his feet whether it’s in deep midfield areas, in the centre spot, getting forward, out wide.

“He’ll always look to find a position where the ball can be played into him. And that doesn’t matter whether he’s got two players around him, three players around him. He’s so brave. He’ll take the ball in tight situations and he wants to make things happen. He wants to force the issue on other people, on the opponent.

“And that’s something that I love about him because some people when the going gets tough can generally hide and not want the ball and not be brave and don’t want to take that responsibility. He always takes the responsibility.”

It is fantastic for Leeds to have Hernandez back in the ranks. It is probably fair to say that the 34-year-old had not been at his best before sustaining an injury. But there is no question that he is a huge asset to Bielsa’s side.

And if he does get back to his best in the coming weeks, Leeds stand a great chance of building on their current position in the table and perhaps pulling away from the chasing pack.