Leeds United and Burnley may have combined for seven goals in midweek, but Monday night’s table-topping showdown at Turf Moor recalls what Sir Alex Ferguson once said about the importance of defence.
Attack wins games – Leeds thrashed Norwich City on Wednesday, while Burnley destroyed Plymouth Argyle – but a rock-solid backline is frequently the foundation upon which a title-winning season is built.
Burnley has surrendered an incredible nine goals in 28 games. Leeds’ ‘ground-breaking’ defensive metrics are even more astounding when you look deeper.
Daniel Farke’s team limits their opponents to fewer than two shots on goal per game on average. Norwich City did not even push Ilan Meslier to make a save at Elland Road. Not even Scott Parker’s unbeatable Burnley can match that.
Despite the ongoing absence of Pascal Struijk from Farke’s defensive unit, Norwich barely gave Leeds United a chance.
Meanwhile, in Germany, the unexpected departure of Omar Marmoush to Manchester City means Eintracht Frankfurt, without their 20-goal top scorer, may suddenly place a greater emphasis on the opposite end of the game.
Fortunately, with Robin Koch playing the greatest, most consistent football of his career, even a Marmoush-less Frankfurt appear poised to continue their improvement under head coach Dino Toppmoller.
Former Leeds United defender Robin Koch is exceptional in the Europa League.
Frankfurt defeated Borussia Dortmund without Marmoush last weekend, with Leeds loanee Rasmus Kristensen setting up Hugio Ekitike’s early opening, before winning a second consecutive 2-0 win in the Europa League against Hungarian champions Ferencvaros on Thursday.
If Robin Koch was impressive against Dortmund, he was absolutely dominant versus Ferencvaros.
Six clearances, two tackles, two interceptions, and a 93% pass completion rate. This was about as comprehensive a performance as you could possibly imagine from a center defender.
24 hours after Leeds limited Norwich to three shots on goal, Ferencvaros could only muster one in Germany, as Frankfurt maintained their perfect start since Marmoush’s departure.
“A winner in the air and on the ground, defensive boss Robin Koch played a major role in ensuring that Ferencvaros remained without a scoring chance,” according to Kicker, a German publication.
According to BILD, Koch was almost ‘unbeatable’ at the center of a ‘remarkable’ defensive effort.
“The defense is very good.” We also have a very high level of individual quality,” Frankfurt assistant coach Jan Fiesser beamed after his team’s victory, which moves them into the top eight of the Europa League rankings.
“The defensive readiness of the whole team is also at a very high level at the moment.”
Only Lazio has more than Frankfurt’s 16 points after seven games. When Robin Koch is on the pitch in European competition, Toppmoller’s squad concedes only 0.7 goals per game.
Koch’s ‘amazingly fantastic’ distribution reminds us why Leeds signed him.
“[Koch is an] absolute boss in the ring,” according to Frankfurter Rundschau. “He held things together and combed through everything thoroughly. He wasn’t assigned any particularly challenging assignments, yet he completed them without compromise.”
It wasn’t simply Robin Koch’s excellent game reading or physical strength that drew Leeds United’s attention when they signed him from Freiburg in 2020.
Marcelo Bielsa expects his center-backs to form the foundation for assaults while stopping opposition advances in their tracks.
Koch’s outstanding distribution was a key reason why Leeds saw him as the perfect heir to the legendary Ben White.
And, as the 12-time Germany international repeatedly targeted his Frankfurt teammates with pinpoint passes out of defence on Thursday – his passing range was ‘amazingly good’, according to the Frankfurter Rundschau – this is clearly a trait Robin Koch is honing as he approaches the pinnacle of his professional career.
