Any young player that shows potential has a huge amount of pressure put on them to become the next big thing, could Ben White live up to his. He is only 23 and has already had a price tag of £25 million put on his head that was turned down by Brighton, Leeds wanted to keep hold of the loanee after a very successful title winning season that saw them return to the top flight after 16 years, Ben playing every minute of all 46 games that season for Leeds.
The 2019/20 season for Leeds was an impressive one topping the table by 10 points but no doubt Ben played a huge part in that, seen by the fact he featured in the Championship team of the season and not only that he had one of the highest number of interceptions that season, not only in the Championship but across all of Europes top divisions, an impressive stat for the then 22 year old. He played all his games at centre back bar 3, those being played in centre defensive midfield where he looks just as comfortable, his versatility is something every manager wants but could it also hold him back by not allowing him to perfect his craft in one position.
During the 2020/21 season with Brighton in the Premier League he has played 26 games at the time of writing this, 8 of those games being played in midfield the rest being played at centre back, already Potter has used him in Midfield 5 more times than Biesla did with Leeds. It’s hard to compare his performances with Brighton and those with Leeds as the 2 teams play different styles but in both the Championship and Premier League he has shown his array of passing and his ability to make a strong tackle or block when needed, he loves a slide tackle too.
With his performances being pointed out by pundits and the drama at the start of the season with Leeds a lot of eyes have been put on the young man throughout the season, this leading to interest from other clubs, the biggest one at the moment being Arsenal, looking to pick up another Brighton player after taking Maty Ryan on loan. Can Brighton afford to lose Ben White though, they recently had a good run of games, winning 3, drawing 3 and only conceding 1 goal during that stretch but since then have lost their last 3 games. The difference, Adam Webster, Brighton generally play with 3 centre backs and by losing one of them Dan Burn is used to fill in, the other option is to play 4 at the back, neither system seeming to be successful. If Brighton were to lose Ben at the end of the season could they find a way to make the previously mentioned systems work or would they need to use the money to bring in a replacement.
So is Ben White too good for Brighton, the short answer is no or at least not yet, he has great potential but so does the Brighton team, you look at any of the expected goals charts and the team is right at the top, their problem lies in converting chances. If Brighton can solve this problem then I think the question becomes irrelevant because Brighton themselves would be a team that is improving the same way Ben is himself so the two could evolve together. However if Brighton can’t solve their goal scoring problem and the worst thing happens, relegation, then without a doubt he is too good for a Championship side and a move to Arsenal or Leeds would be nothing more than he deserves.
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