ANTON STACH says Dominic Calvert-Lewin is a crucial player for Leeds United to have on their side when things are going against them, and keeping the goals coming for him when they are on top will be important for their Premier League survival chances.
Calvert-Lewin scored his first goal for his new club to equalise at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday. It was the first goal Leeds had scored from open play in the new Premier League season and set them on the way to a 3-1 win, their first away from home in 2025-26.
The 6ft 2in striker who came through at his boyhood club Sheffield United is brilliant at hanging in the air, so when Jayden Bogle’s 31st-minute cross looped up after taking a deflection, it was perfect for Calvert-Lewin to climb to and head in.
Calvert-Lewin’s aerial prowess has always been his biggest strength, and an increasingly rare trait from centre-forwards in modern football. He had shown the value of his abilities as a targetman the previous week at Fulham on his first start for the club, only for Gabriel Gudmundsson’s stoppage-time own goal to ensure it went unrewarded.
Leeds’ midfield has been remodelled this season from a two to a three, putting greater emphasis on those around Ethan Ampadu – two of Stach, Sean Longstaff and Ao Tanaka – to get forward and score goals. So it is no surprise the German appreciates playing with Calvert-Lewin in front of him.
“With Dom it’s really good because when we struggle in the back or we have some pressure you can play every ball to him because he’s strong, he’s athletic,” said Stach, whose goal at Molineux came from a direct free-kick after a foul on Calvert-Lewin.
“He can jump, he keeps the ball, and then we can go underneath for a layback or the second balls. This is so important because when you come out you (can) overload many players.”
Calvert-Lewin’s time at Everton – who he joined from the Blades in 2016 – showed what he was capable of, with a purple patch of two seasons from 2019 to 2021 yielding 29 Premier League goals and propelling him into the England squad.
But injury problems dogged him for the next four years, and saw him released by the Toffees in the summer to join Leeds on a free transfer.
Whites fans had been hoping for something rather more expensive than Calvert-Lewin and fellow free transfer Lukas Nmecha as their new No 9s when they made the step up from Championship football, and the Yorkshireman’s debut was an unhappy one, coming off the bench to miss some good chances in regulation play, then a shoot-out penalty, as Sheffield Wednesday knocked Leeds out of the League Cup on penalties.
Strikers can find it hard to recover from bad starts in front of goal, so Calvert-Lewin’s goal at Molineux – only his second in the past year – was important to nip it in the bud.
“He scored his first goal, a really good goal and it’s good for him of course,” said Stach, who also found the net for the first time at Molineux, with Leeds looking to build on that at home to Bournemouth on Saturday.
“He’s really important for the club. I hope he keeps scoring. That’s the most important thing for us.”
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