Leeds United are doing great in their first season back in the Premier League, and we’ve seen several young stars emerge such as Patrick Bamford and Robin Koch.
The Whites’ signing of Rodrigo Moreno during the summer for a club transfer record fee of £30-M has been well-received by the fans at Elland Road. However, some are still skeptical of their other signing in Robin Koch especially since it was overshadowed by the departure of Ben White.
But so far Robin Koch has been proving doubters wrong with his strong performances playing in the midfield and at the back, and he looks to have settled in nicely for Leeds United.
He will definitely play a pivotal role for the Whites’ Premier League 2020 odds this term.
It can be noted that during their 2019/20 season playing in the Championship, the Whites have only conceded 35 goals after 46 matchdays — which is considered the best in the competition — and that helped them seal their return after a 16-year hiatus.
Today, SBOTOP takes a look at the 24-year-old’s budding career, from his experience in Germany all the way to his arrival at Elland Road.
His footballing journey started at home
From the moment he was able to kick a football, Robin Koch has never stopped playing since.
At five years of age, Koch would go on to play for Kaiserlautern, SV Dorbach, and Eintracht Trier to round out his youth career.
With him progressing quickly, Koch would move up to the senior ranks and make his debut during a 0-0 draw against TuS Koblenz in September 2014. He would proceed to score his first career senior goal two months later in a 4-2 victory versus SpVgg Neckarelz.
All in all, Koch appeared in 23 league matches with two goals under his name.
With his stock rising by the day, Koch eventually played in the second division of the Bundesliga. He would make 27 total appearances for his hometown club in Kaiserlautern with one goal to show.
Koch would move on to SC Freiburg back in 2017 for a transfer fee of 3.5-M Euros and he would establish himself as a topnotch defender.
In his three seasons playing for SC Freiburg, Koch would compile 82 appearances and four goals and his name would often pop up as a budget-friendly target during the transfer window.
He also served his country by representing Germany in their U21 and senior teams to where he notched nine international caps.
Leeds United pushed hard to get him
Since he has played well in Freiburg, many pundits thought that he will eventually play for bigger Bundesliga clubs such as Bayern Munich or Borussia Dortmund.
However, Leeds United were quick to pounce on the opportunity and fellow defender Mateusz Klich played a huge role in bringing him over to Elland Road for £13-M.
“Mateusz Klich was a good guy to talk to because we had played together in the past for FC Kaiserlautern,” said Koch.
“Once I had signed the contract and left the stadium at Elland Road, there were maybe 100 fans waiting outside. It was then when I really realised how unique this club is and how special the connection with the fan is,” he further detailed.
Koch admitted that he was hesitant to join the Whites at the beginning especially since they were just trying to make it in the Premier League at the time. But the club made him feel wanted and the decision to play under Marcelo Bielsa became easy to commit to.
“Leeds sent me a PowerPoint presentation. In it I could exactly how coach Bielsa and the scouts analysed me and how I fit into the style of play at Leeds,” said Koch.
“I had the feeling that I’ve never been analysed in such detail, especially since I wasn’t even a player in the club. That really impressed me and was a key factor in my decision,” he added.
Robin Koch is a diamond in the rough
The 24-year-old defender got the nod to start right away in Leeds United’s first Premier League match versus defending champions Liverpool. However, he got off to a bad start.
Koch had given away the penalty resulting into Liverpool’s first goal of the match despite the ball deflected off of his knee. And then he failed to mark down Virgil van Dijk for the Reds’ second goal of the match.
Despite facing early criticisms, Koch would use that as fuel to further improve his game. And that culminated to an encouraging performance in a loss to the Wolves.
In the said fixture, the young German had Premier League 2020 highlights galore with a 93-per cent pass accuracy, 10 ball recoveries, five interceptions, two successful tackles, and two clearances.
With the defencive midfield being the most important position in Marcelo Bielsa’s playbook, the team will need someone to step up big time especially since Kalvin Phillips is sidelined for a few weeks.
Robin Koch is primed to fill in his shoes, and his constant improvement should further unlock the Whites’ versatility in this campaign.
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