Anton Stach enjoyed another impressive performance on Saturday as Leeds United drew 1-1 against Villarreal.
Anton Stach ‘can’t wait’ to feel Elland Road rocking for Premier League football after getting his first taste of the atmosphere against Villarreal.
Stach was one of five summer arrivals to make their Elland Road debut on Saturday as Leeds and Villarreal played out a 1-1 draw, with Joel Piroe cancelling out Etta Eyong’s 62nd-minute opener. The German midfielder started alongside Gabriel Gudmundsson, Sean Longstaff and Lukas Nmecha while Jaka Bijol came off the bench.
Stach was arguably the standout new face, however, with the 6ft 4ins midfielder able break up play effectively and move it forward, with over 35,000 inside Elland Road receptive to his efforts. Saturday’s friendly provided a soft launch into how things will look against Everton on Monday August 18 and Leeds’ £17.4million man is looking forward to the real thing in two week’s time.
In a post on Instagram following the result, Stach wrote: “Debut at Elland Road — unreal feeling. Can’t wait to light it up at home in the Premier League.”
Will Anton Stach start vs Everton?
Stach is staking a real claim to be in that starting line-up when Everton come to town for the season-opener, with the midfielder settling into his new surroundings quickly and showing ample quality. The German international operated slightly ahead of Ethan Ampadu on Saturday and was effective in and out of possession.
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The question for Daniel Farke, it seems, is who starts alongside Ampadu and Stach. The Whites boss once again went for a 4-3-3 formation against Villarreal, with last season’s No.10 Brenden Aaronson out wide and Longstaff the third central midfielder, albeit the £15m Newcastle United arrival did not stand out in the same way.
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Ao Tanaka improved things once introduced and perhaps offers a little more balance, with the Japan international as good as anyone technically, while physicality concerns are somewhat mitigated with Stach and Ampadu both present. Ilia Gruev once again looked steady on Saturday and has been consistently impressive through pre-season.
With Leeds likely to enjoy a decent amount of possession against Everton - at least, more than they will expect to have against Arsenal or Newcastle in the following fixtures - Farke might be minded to prioritise Tanaka’s craftsmanship and cute link-up play with Willy Gnonto. The likes of Longstaff and Gruev might then be better-suited to combatting more possession-dominant opponents.
Leeds’ final pre-season friendly against AC Milan takes place in Dublin on Saturday and Farke is expected to name close to his strongest available side, which might provide a hint as to his thinking ahead of Everton. The Whites will hope to welcome back injured stars including Perri, Bornauw and Jayden Bogle.
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