Joel Piroe joined Leeds United this summer from Swansea City, with the Dutch forward penning a four-year deal in West Yorkshire to end the Whites’ pursuit of a goalscorer.
He also cost around £10 million, which is a snip, as he was in the last year of his deal in South Wales and has so far been asked to play in a slightly deeper role behind Georginio Rutter since arriving from Swansea in late August, which has seen him score four goals in seven appearances already.
The Dutchman will score goals wherever he is deployed: be that as a ten or nine, as a centre-forward on the last line or as a secondary-striker attacking the box from deep. He had scored or assisted 49 goals in 88 Championship games prior to joining Leeds for a mid-table Swansea team.
The 24-year-old is always fit and available, with a really strong injury record, too. The best ability is availability, but to also have such a potent record in front of goal for a Swansea side made a player like Piroe another must-have for the Whites, who had struggled for goals in recent years without Rodrigo scoring regularly last season as they were relegated.
At only 24, and in the last year of his deal, Piroe could prove to be a cost-effective signing, and one which guarantees Leeds a clinical nature in attack. Clinical forwards are gold dust at any level, but he could be the difference maker for Farke’s forward line and has proved to be so far in games this season.
Piroe is already well off the mark thanks to goals against Ipswich Town, Millwall, and Watford making it four in six games in a Leeds shirt. Leeds needed a more natural finisher than either Rutter or Patrick Bamford in their team, and the 24-year-old provides that by making runs into the box from deep.
However, against QPR in their most recent outing, he struggled somewhat to get involved in the game. Piroe is looking to crash the box on the blindside of defenders to score from close range or finding space on the edge of the area to use his superior ball-striking to find goals from further out.
He can, and has, done this; but often is in vacated space and not found by teammates, or if he is in space, he can be crowded out easily before firing a shot away. He cut a frustrated figure at Elland Road on Wednesday night.
He will obviously be vital for the Whites all season and is proving to be in his early outings whist his partnership with Leeds’ main centre-forward develops but there are concerns around his suitability, even if he is scoring at a relatively decent rate.
