Leeds United are certainly not out of the woods yet when it comes to the relegation battle.
The Whites sit 15th in the Premier League table, just three points out of the relegation zone, but are significantly ahead of West Ham United in 18th on goal difference.
Manager Daniel Farke needs his key players to step up and give their best performance, and key midfielder Ethan Ampadu is one of the players who must play at the highest level. It has already been a strong season for the Welshman.
Why Ampadu is important for Leeds
There are several players at Elland Road who are considered vital to Leeds’ hopes of staying. There are players like Anton Stach and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, but perhaps the most important of them is club captain Ampadu.
The 59-capped Wales international has featured in 26 Premier League games this season, missing just three due to injury and suspension. He has one goal and one assist and has received seven yellow cards in that time, which perhaps indicates the type of tough-tackling midfielder he is.
The leadership that Ampadu brings to the Leeds side will be vital. The captain has proven to be a natural leader for Leeds, with the manager explaining: “He has grown increasingly into this leadership role and is our leader.”
Another reason the Exeter-born star is important to Falke is the versatility he offers.
Most of the time, Ampadu has played as a number six, sitting in front of the defence. But he can also play as a centre-back, which he has played twice this season, or even as a number 10.
Incredibly, there is now a former Leeds player who is worth more than Ampadu, and who is just as versatile.
Leeds flop now worth more than Ampadu
There are some elite-level footballers who are currently playing at Elland Road despite fighting for relegation, like Ampadu. Over the years they have employed some great players, including Raphinha, who is now at Barcelona, and Archie Gray is in the middle of his own relegation battle at Spurs.
One of Gray’s current team-mates may not look back on his time at Elland Road very fondly from fans, but there is no doubt that Jed Spence is a great footballer. The Lilywhites full-back played just seven games for Leeds in 2023, struggling with injuries and a lack of regular minutes.
Yet he remained a key player for Spurs, despite a poor season for the North Londoners, who are below Leeds in the table.
He has appeared in 47 Premier League games over the past two seasons and 12 times in Europe, helping the club win the Europa League last season.
Unsurprisingly given his impressive results in 2024/25, he made the full England squad in September. Last season in the Premier League, Spence ranked in the top 2% of full-backs in the division with 1.91 successful dribbles per 90 minutes, and in the top 9% with an average of 6.49 duels won per match.
Spence Key stats for 24/25 PL | ||
|---|---|---|
State (per 90) | number | rank |
cross accuracy | 36% | Top 6% |
Dribbling completed | 1.91 | Top 2% |
won a duel | 6.49 | Top 9% |
Number of balls collected | 5.48 | Top 18% |
Number of times dribbled through | 0.35 | Top 9% |
Fotmob statistics | ||
Indeed, there is certainly an argument to be made that the full-back has become a better player than Ampadu. Like the Welshman, he is a versatile player who can play on either flank, as a wing-back or even as a centre-back. The quality he has shown on the European club football stage is further proof of that.
But what really suggests he is better than the Welshman is the fact that he is worth far more. According to Transfermarkt, Spence is worth a reported £26m, higher than the Whites captain’s valuation of £22m.
Ampadu is not the only Leeds player to be rated lower than Spence. In fact, the team as a whole is worth less than that, with Stach worth the same amount as Ampadu, and Calvert-Lewin and Pascal Strujk both reportedly worth £19m.
He’s Jack Harrison 2.0: Falke shouldn’t get off to a flop start at Leeds again this season
The Leeds United man is on his way to becoming the next Jack Harrison at Elland Road.
