It feels as though Pascal Struijk has made more than ten appearances for Leeds United, but that is not the case. The young Dutch defender has only managed 13 outings for Leeds' first-team and under-23 side since the beginning of last season, but has been involved with the first-team's matchday squads for the vast majority of that period.
Perhaps it is indicative of a player whose presence whenever he took to the field never appeared overawed or burdened by expectation. Even in the Premier League, he has been unmoved by the prospect of blowing his chance at the top level. Struijk has conducted himself calmly and considerately throughout his time as a senior player at Leeds and it is little surprise too.
The 21-year-old was educated for a period at AFC Ajax's school of football, De Toekomst , the Dutch club's storied academy. His time at Ajax may have been short-lived but Leeds identified a player in Struijk that could be of some value to them.
Then still a teenager, but not appearing as such on the pitch, Struijk helped Leeds to victory in the Professional Development League in 2018-19, before making his first-team debut shortly after his 20th birthday.
Marcelo Bielsa is known for his reluctance to tinker with his first-team starting eleven, therefore to be entrusted with starting spots - infrequent as they may be - speaks volumes for how high Struijk's stock is in the eyes of the Argentine.
Cynics may suggest his introduction to the first-team fold has been a necessity, a decision forced upon Bielsa rather than one of his own volition. But, that would fail to consider his involvement in Bielsa's matchday squads for the entirety of 2020. This has not been a short, sharp rise, but a calculated and planned one.
Struijk's time at Premier League level has not been an enjoyable one from a personal perspective. His four starts have yielded three defeats, and the one game in which Leeds won, against Aston Villa, he was substituted after 20 minutes. Needless to say, he has remained resolute, kept his head down and performed the tasks asked of him whenever he has been called upon.
There may still be rough edges to his game, and some way to go before he is a £20 million footballer, but extending his deal until summer 2024 offers Struijk plenty of time to build on his positive start, without the looming spectre of contract negotiations. The most important aspect of this extension means he can now focus solely on his football.
It is easy to forget that Struijk is merely 21 years-old, one of the youngest first-team players in this Leeds squad. Marcelo Bielsa revolutionised a 22-year-old Kalvin Phillips' career upon his arrival at the club in 2018 and has turned a squad made up of Championship nearly-men into Premier League quality players. Who is to suggest Bielsa does not have the same in mind for Pascal Struijk too?
