Stuart Dallas' Premier League doubts and the secret to becoming a top flight midfielder for Leeds United

The uncertainty that existed within, even before he was asked to play in a still-unfamiliar midfield position against elite opposition, stemmed from his total lack of top-flight experience.

Prior to the 2020/21 season, like so many of his team-mates, Dallas had never kicked a ball in the Premier League

Unlike Luke Ayling, who freely admitted after promotion was won that he didn’t know if he could fulfil the dream he had made come true, Dallas had the benefit of extensive close contact with world-class players.

While still in the Championship Dallas named Joshua Kimmich, another right-back who became a central midfielder, as the best player he had faced, thanks to their encounter during Northern Ireland’s Euro 2016 qualifier against Germany.

That was one of three occasions when Dallas took on the Germans and he twice faced the Netherlands prior to stepping foot in the English top tier, so he was no stranger to quality.

“With me playing international level I always felt I could compete with the best players in the world,” he told the YEP.

“Whether I stand out or not that’s another question. I always believed in myself that I’m capable of playing at this level but of course you do have doubts because you’ve never done it before. There was always that doubt.”

If the doubt was shared by any in the Leeds faithful, it was quickly dispelled as Dallas quietly and efficiently went about the job of adding the 2021/21 Player of the Season award to the Player’s Player prize he retained from the promotion-winning campaign.

What made that feat especially remarkable was not so much his instantaneous adaptation to the Premier League, but what was asked of him.

Just 180 minutes of the season had been played when Marcelo Bielsa turned to Dallas and asked him to play in midfield.

“I know it’s not my strongest position,” the Ulsterman admitted in January 2020.

Even as recently as March of this year he was playing down his suitability for a role in the centre of the pitch.

Yet having accrued a total of 15 appearances as a midfielder, almost double the amount he had in 2019/20, and started to look more and more at home there, Dallas at least appears more at ease with the title of ‘midfielder’ even if he’s still not prepared to use it himself.

“At the start of last season if you’d asked me I’d have said I preferred playing full-back,” he said.