Leeds United forward Tyler Roberts has suggested that the urge to get some regular first team football, and the size and history of the Whites were the key motivators behind his switch to Elland Road in January 2018.

Roberts endured a frustrating start to his career at Elland Road picking up an injury which prevented him from making his first team debut during the second half of the 2017/18 campaign, but he was back to full fitness for the start of last season and has managed to establish himself as a key performer under Marcelo Bielsa.

The forward managed to score a brace on his first home league start for the Whites in a 3-0 win against Preston North End at the start of last season, and Roberts went on to register three goals and five assists in 28 Championship appearances, as Leeds just missed out on automatic promotion to the Premier League last term.

The Wales international, though, missed out on Leeds’ play-off semi-final clash against Derby County through injury, and he has seen his involvement this season affected by injury troubles, but Roberts did return to action ahead of the campaign being suspended netting a brace in a 4-0 demolition of Hull City.

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Speaking in a Q and A with the club’s supporters on Leeds’ official Twitter page, Roberts suggested that the chance to play first team football and the size and history around the Whites were the key factors behind his move from West Brom.

He said: "I was at obviously West Brom, I’d just come back from a loan at Walsall and I kind of wanted to cement a first team place at West Brom, and when that got made kind of obvious that it wasn’t going to be that season or maybe the next season, I’d kind of had enough of going out on loan and moving teams I wanted to settle and fight for a first team spot.

"So, Leeds were interested, and they said that I’d be part of the first team so obviously it’s a massive club so it was pretty much a no brainer for me."

The verdict

Roberts has endured a somewhat frustrating time of it on the injury front since he made the move to Elland Road in January 2018, but the forward has shown his ability to be a threat in the final third when he has been fully fit and able to get a consistent run of games under his belt.

The forward was not really in the first team plans at the Hawthorns when he made the switch to Elland Road, but West Brom were relegated from the Premier League later that campaign and Leeds are now fighting it out with the Baggies for the Championship title this term.

The Wales international has the potential to really kick on over the next few years under Bielsa if he can really keep himself fully fit, and the break in the campaign might have given him time to rest so that he can comeback and play a potentially key role in helping the whites seal promotion to the Premier League, if the season resumes.