Leeds United captain Liam Cooper has hailed the impact of new signing Ethan Ampadu.
Cooper was speaking in an interview with Leeds Live, where he claimed Ampadu has already helped to improve those around him due to his quality in possession.
Ampadu is just one of two first team signings at Leeds this summer, joining in a £7m + add-ons deal from Chelsea last month in what was the first addition of the Daniel Farke era.
It has not taken him long to settle in at Elland Road, though, starting all three of the pre-season friendlies he has been available for, with his competitive debut set to arrive against Cardiff City on Sunday.
Even just from the friendlies, it is clear just how important Ampadu will be to Farke’s system due to his quality in possession and his willingness to pick up the ball from the defence.
Cooper hails Ampadu impact after £7m Leeds arrival
Ampadu’s understanding with the centre-backs will be key to ensuring Leeds are successful under Farke and Cooper believes he is already making those around him ‘better’ and ‘calmer’.
He said: “He’s been brilliant. His experience, the experience he brings, the amount of games he’s played at club level and international level, at such a young age, is brilliant for us.
“He makes everybody else better, he makes everybody else calmer and [in] his first two weeks, I can’t say enough about him.”
Leeds will be pressed to find a better signing than Ampadu this summer with it already clear he is capable of playing at a higher level than the Championship.
Ampadu is constantly talking and directing those around him when on the pitch, and he is equally as confident playing long balls, as he is keeping it simple.
There is no doubt he will be pivotal to how Leeds play under Farke and hopefully he can show that against Cardiff this weekend.
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