Sam Greenwood is enjoying an imperious run of form in a Middlesbrough shirt following his loan move from Leeds United this summer, and according to one journalist, the ‘sensible money’ is on the Teesside club making the move permanent.
The 21-year-old attacking midfielder arrived at Boro with a flicker of excitement rather than an overwhelming sense of expectation, largely due to his hot and cold form at Leeds. I caught up with Phil Hay, a journalist for The Athletic, who kindly offered some insight into the view from Elland Road.
“It became apparent towards the end of the window that he wasn’t going to figure much under Farke.” said Hay.
“There seemed little sense in hanging onto him in those circumstances. He is clearly having a good season at Middlesbrough, but at the time, there wasn’t much objection to him heading out.
“He’s never been a key player at Leeds, despite his involvement at first-team level.”
Patience has been the key
Hay alludes to Greenwood having a good season at Middlesbrough, which is absolutely true at this point, but Carrick has had to be patient with him. Even when it seemed that Greenwood was desperate to play, the Boro boss held him back until he was confident that he understood the team’s ethos and objectives.
It is no coincidence that since Riley McGree’s injury, Greenwood has flourished in that same role on the left hand side. Drifting in and affecting games is something both are equally adept at doing. That is not to say that McGree is not missed, he most certainly is, but Sam offers a very similar way of playing; technically very sound and capable of making key passes and scoring outlandish goals. None more so that the spectacular, match-winning effort against Leicester City.
The Leeds loanee has now scored 4 goals in 7 starts, with his goals often proving pivotal. He got the match winner against Leicester, his goal against Plymouth put Boro 3-2 up and probably should have won the game, and his goals against Sunderland and Norwich came at an important period in both games.
Greenwood’s most effective position
Carrick seems to have found Greenwood’s most effective position pretty quickly, whereas Hay states that, that was one of the main issues with regards to why it hasn’t quite happened for Greenwood at Leeds. “The issue for Greenwood at Leeds has been the challenge to find the position where he fits best.” Acknowledged Hay.
He added, “When he came from Arsenal, he was regarded as a forward, something close to a nine, but many of his appearances under Marcelo Bielsa and then Jesse Marsch were made as a central midfielder.
“It wasn’t that Greenwood did terribly there, but it also wasn’t the case that he looked an especially good fit. Middlesbrough seem to be using him further forward, albeit in a wider role, and it’s not a surprise if that’s suiting him better.”
Not that there was ever any suggestion that Greenwood was difficult to deal with or manage at Leeds, but in case any Boro fans had any concern in that department, they will be pleased to know that Hay has only ever heard good things about his attitude and application elsewhere. It appears his approach to football is pretty exemplary in fact, with the Leeds writer explaining, “He’s very much a homebird. His dad told me a while back that when he was at Arsenal, he spent virtually no time exploring London or going into the capital properly. He’d go back and watch the Arsenal academy teams when he had time off, very low key.”
Better business for Boro
If Michael Carrick and his coaching team can continue to get the best out of Sam Greenwood, then the £1.5 million buy clause looks like a very good piece of business for Boro, with Hay agreeing, even though he does feel it will still suit both parties.
Hay said, “If his form continues and Boro activate the clause, it’ll look like better business for them than it does for Leeds (which is not to say that Leeds are particularly rueing their decision-they’re pretty happy with their lot).
“When the option was agreed, people at Boro felt like it might be very good value. Their view was that £1.5m was significantly less than he might be worth if his potential was realised.”
I asked if he felt that there was any future for Sam Greenwood at Leeds United, and given that Hay does not feel he gets into Leeds’ current 20, he does not see that he does.
“Realistically, no. He wasn’t in the picture under Farke and Farke’s on a long contract at leeds.
“If they go up this season, Farke will have been a driving force behind planning for the Premier League-and it’s still to be proven that Greenwood is a long-term Premier League player. Greenwood and Boro are looking like a good fit. The sensible money is probably on that permanent option being activated.”
That statement can only be good news for Middlesbrough supporters who would surely be glad to see a player of Greenwood’s calibre come through the door for such a meagre sum of money.