'Respect' - David Prutton salutes impact of Leeds United star and declares what player now 'deserves'
A key Whites player has received warm praise from ex-Leeds favourite David Prutton.
David Prutton has saluted the dual impact of a Leeds United ace and outlined his hope that the Whites star now gets what he deserves.
Ethan Ampadu's second season with the Whites has been his first as club captain and ex-Leeds midfielder Prutton has been impressed with the skipper's role on and off the pitch.
Unfortunately for Ampadu, the 24-year-old midfielder is looking at more of the latter as he recovers from a knee cartilage injury which Leeds initially feared would need surgery.
It still might do - yet the decision for more conservative treatment has been taken in the hope to get the captain back for United's promotion-chase run in.
Surgery, though, would end the skipper's season - one that Leeds are hoping will end with promotion to the Premier League.
Giving a big thumbs up to his work as captain, Prutton only hopes Ampadu is back to play a big role in that final push - declaring that thorough professional Amapdu deserves it.
"It will be a frustrating one," said Prutton of Ampadu to the YEP.
"We talked earlier in the season about him being out and then suddenly you get Joe Rothwell and Ao Tanaka looking like one of the best midfield partnerships in the division.
"Obviously Tanaka's journey has been a bit different but Joe is a very good player.
"I'm sure he didn't come to Leeds to be a bit part player at all because of his reputation and his ability but his ability to change games, his responsibility on the ball, his ability on the ball and his ability from set pieces and we have all seen that is priceless.
"Daniel has called Ethan his important player and frustratingly for him part of that importance this season him has been his job off the pitch. It's nice to be held in that regard by your teammates and your management.
"But as a footballer and I get the feeling that he is like this, you really feel like your only currency and the value of your currency is on the pitch, getting through the leg work and going through the same battles as your teammates physically, mentally and emotionally and that will be the bit that will be frustrating him.
"But it seems that he is very level headed, very balanced and he has got a lot of perspective. All of that is seemingly very reflective of what this Leeds team is, very calm and composed. He is a major part of that.
"I will be gutted for him if it ends up being two months' time and he is still not back on the pitch but I understand the conservative approach because any form of surgery is down to that black and white decision where it's categorically needed.
"When it's a grey area such as this, it can be a frustrating thing where he'll be chomping at the bit to make sure he is involved as much as possible but you have got to respect your body and the opinions of the medical experts.
"I do feel for him, we saw his chat to the players on the pitch at the end of the game at Bramall Lane and that shows how much they respect him whether he is wearing the shirt or not for a portion of time.
"It will be tough for him to keep an eye on it but I always think that things like this in the long run will stand you in good stead. That said, I thoroughly, thoroughly understand and get the frustration in the short term too.
"The scenes that Ethan saw at Bramall Lane, you want to be a part of that and he is a part of that. But it feels more like you are a part of it when you have got the armband on and you are tearing around and doing what everyone else is doing on the pitch.
"He has got a reputation as an extremely good professional and an extremely good teammate and I hope he is back soon because I feel like players like that deserve their place on the pitch."