Ex-Leeds United man on transfer query posed in Max Wober meeting and 'unfair' characterisation

The January transfer window has scarcely creaked open and through it has climbed Leeds United's new defender Max Wober.

I actually interviewed him on Monday night at the ground, we had a chat and a walk around the pitch and then an interview outside the dressing room. There's some surprise, in the reaction to this one, that we've signed a left-sided centre-back who can play at left-back, rather than an out and out left-back, and I said exactly that, asking him where he actually likes to play. But he believes he’s now experienced at left-back having played almost all season at full-back for Salzburg, in a Red Bull system. He says it doesn’t matter where he plays and he’s confident enough to take on even the number 6 position. Marsch has signed him twice now, so the head coach, who has addressed the needs of the squad a number of times on the record, knows exactly who and what he’s getting in Wober.

When you look at where he's been schooled, including at Ajax, it might be a little unfair to characterise him as simply a centre-back. From what I've seen of him he looks comfortable on the ball and can get forward well. What I do like is that one of his key strengths is leadership - he captained Salzburg at the age of 24 and the more leadership we can get out on the pitch the better. Of course he's got to get into the side, but it will be interesting to see how he gets on. With Marsch and players he knows from previous clubs around him, he's got a chance of hitting the ground running to show us what he can do and why we signed him.

He joins the team in the wake of an important point against a difficult team. When you looked at Manchester City at home and Newcastle United away, it felt like anything we got out of those two would have been a bonus.

Going into St James' Park what was immediately apparent was the atmosphere and how different it was. The noise was tremendous, they have the choreographed displays, it just felt a world away from previous visits when there was a previous regime in charge and the crowd always felt close to turning. I never felt that at all on Saturday, and you can see the team playing with such confidence in that atmosphere, the two feeding each other.

It wasn't as if we didn't expect that, looking at how things have gone there in recent times, but it was something for us to deal with.

Jesse Marsch didn't stick with the 4-3-3, he changed it back to 4-2-3-1 and I think Tyler Adams and Adam Forshaw as the holding midfielders did extremely well. We also looked dangerous at times going forward. Our small, technical, speedy frontmen caused problems because we were getting it through that midfield area. I was very impressed.

The second half was different and it was difficult. They're at home, they're expecting to win and expected to win, and for us it was all about showing a different side that we haven't managed to show too often. Being calm under intense pressure was the key and even if we offered precious little at the other end and got a little bit lucky here and there, I would say it was a marked improvement defensively.

What I think is clear is that we have to be a lot better with the ball. The front players, like Rodrigo, need to do that little bit more when it comes their way, although they will rightly say 'we're not getting the service' so it's a whole team issue that needs to improve.

Sometimes the options to go forward aren't there, or when they are the ball isn't right. If you don't keep the ball very well, or if you're not going to have it for very long and you still don't keep it very well, you're really going to have to do some work. We want to get it up there with quality. For 45 minutes against City we saw panic in possession, which was strange, but at least there was more composure at Newcastle.

West Ham United at home is a really big game. This is our fight, this season and I'm a little surprised that we find ourselves in and around West Ham because of the money they've spent. Lucas Paquetá, Gianluca Scamacca, these are quality players, although I'm not sure I would call them true West Ham types.

Not all their signings have come off, they've had injuries and they're on a terrible run with several defeats in a row, so Moyes is under pressure, simply as that.

They know what to expect from Leeds, that we'll come out flying at them and we need to give them what they expect and then keep it going for 90 minutes. West Ham will see this game exactly as we do, a huge one that's winnable. That point at Newcastle will feel wasted if we go and lose at home in our next game, against a side two points behind us. These are the games from which our results need to come.