"It's not enough" - Alan Smith voices doubt over Leeds United key pair and declares position upgrade 'need'
Alan Smith has had his say on Leeds United’s new Premier League task.
Ex-Arsenal star Alan Smith has voiced doubts over a key Leeds United pair and declared a position upgrade “need” on Leeds United’s Premier League return.
Leeds are heading back to the Premier League as Championship champions following a stellar season in which the Whites netted 95 goals en route to amassing 100 points.
The club’s player of the year Dan James bagged 12 of those goals in addition to nine assists but Smith has doubts as to whether James and also last season’s top scorer Joel Piroe will be able to get the goals needed at the top level.
Piroe - who unlike James has yet to be tested at Premier League level - scored 19 goals to finish top of the Championship top scorer charts.
“You look at who’s scoring the goals last season for Leeds, like Dan James, and Joel Piroe, the Dutchman,” said Smith in an interview with Best Betting Sites.co.uk
“Are these boys going to be good enough for the Premier League? James has already had a crack at it, and it’s not really worked, so I think Leeds still need more players.”
Commenting on Leeds links to striker Callum Wilson and keeper Nick Pope, Smith also declared that recruiting a new man between the sticks was a must.
“It’s not enough to keep them up, I don’t think,” said Smith.
“They needed a new keeper. Meslier struggled last season and got replaced by Darlow, but Pope would be a good move. So I think that’s an upgrade, definitely.
“Callum Wilson, he’s had awful injury problems at Newcastle, hasn’t he? He’s got a lot of experience at the top level, but he’s 33 now. Week in, week out, I can’t see him doing it. So I think that they’re going to need more.”