The Leeds United left-back was excellent when replacing Gabriel Gudmundsson.
Former Leeds United left-back Tony Dorigo was ‘delighted’ to see positional peer Melvin Bard take his chance off the bench against Tottenham Hotspur.
Bard replaced Gabriel Gudmundsson at half-time last weekend with the Swede struggling due to a hamstring problem. It was the on-loan defender’s first appearance in over seven weeks and even that was against Newcastle United with the contest all but over.
Sign up to our Leeds United newsletter
Sign up
Thank you for signing up!
Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Yorkshire Evening Post, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more.
Submitting...
But rather than look rusty, Bard came flying out of the blocks, combining big tackles with surging runs and balls in behind that asked questions of the Tottenham defence. It felt like a real breakthrough moment for the left-back whose name was chanted in the South Stand.
“I'm delighted for him because we haven't seen too much of him,” Dorigo told the YEP. “We've just seen him in bits and pieces. But wow, I thought he was really quick into the tackle, clearly wanted to make an impression, but the way he defended was superb.
“Of course he got forward well and put a couple of decent crosses in as well. You couldn't really have asked for any more. I think it's probably symptomatic of what we've got now throughout the squad, in that there really are proper challengers in every position, and I think that it is really important.
“Someone has to push the person in the team to play better, to make sure they keep their spot. Bard came in and showed it in 45 minutes. This boy is an excellent player, a really good defender, and a real asset to the squad.”
While Gudmundsson’s hamstring injury doesn’t appear serious - he still joined up with the Sweden squad earlier this week - Bard’s performance was reassuring. Leeds now have capable, natural cover at left-back which has by no means been a given in recent years.
With Joe Rodon also returning from injury, manager Daniel Farke will have some difficult decisions to make ahead of Chelsea. But healthy competition and solid squad depth will be crucial as the busy winter period arrives.
“I think every player is different,” Dorigo added, speaking courtesy cryptocurrency prices today. “Sometimes the hardest person to please might be yourself with the standards you want to keep. Other players might need someone behind them saying ‘I'm here, you better play well’.
“Joe Rodon is a good example of that actually. I'm looking at the last few games and thinking, ‘okay, Joe's going to come back fit, but we're doing great.’ So these important players that I thought last season or before that, if they were missing, was a real problem.
“Now with Joe being out, we've had other players step up. The more positions that can happen the better.”