The Welsh media have hailed Leeds United defender Joe Rodon as ‘crucial’ to Wales’ 2-0 win over Latvia on Monday night.
Rodon was handed a rating of 7/10 by Wales Online as Wales picked up a crucial three points to keep their faint hopes of qualifying for next summer’s EUROs in Germany alive.
The 25-year-old helped Wales pick up a second consecutive clean sheet of the international break after a 0-0 draw with South Korea in a friendly on Thursday.
Starting alongside Chris Mepham and Ben Davies in a back three, Rodon was solid both defensively and on the ball with his passing in particular singled out for praise.
He completed four of his five attempted long balls and had a pass completion rate of 83.3% to build on his impressive showing against Korea.
Leeds’ Rodon hailed as crucial by Welsh media
Writing in their post-match player ratings piece, Rodon was hailed as a ‘crucial cog’ at the back thanks to his dominance in the air and tidiness in possession.
He said: “Joe Rodon 7. As above, really, good aerially and spread the ball well, linking up with the wing-backs and midfielders. A crucial cog in that back three all night.”
Having helped Leeds pick up their first clean sheet since February in the final match before the international break against Sheffield Wednesday, back-to-back clean sheets for Wales should give him huge confidence.
Rodon is already beginning to form an impressive partnership with Pascal Struijk at Elland Road and it is promising to hear how good he was on the ball and defensively against Latvia.
Hopefully he can bring that form to the resumption of the Championship campaign at Millwall on Sunday as Leeds look to really kick start their season.
Receive a digest of our best Leeds content each week direct to your mailbox
