Leeds United have made big efforts to improve their squad this, wanting their return to the Premier League to be a long-term thing rather than a one season adventure.
Robin Koch was one of the players to arrive at Elland Road in this window, and he joined the English side from SC Freiburg in August.
Sport1 have interviewed the Germany international, who revealed he first heard about Leeds interest when they were still in the Championship.
“Leeds interest came early. I have to honestly say that at the time I didn’t immediately say: ‘Wow, I’ll do that right away.’ At the time, the club were still playing in the Championship and it was not certain that they would be promoted to the Premier League,” he said.
“Over time, however, the interest grew and I became more and more involved with the club.”
Prior to joining Marcelo Bielsa’s side, there were reports linking the defender to Newcastle United and another, unnamed, Premier League club.
Although Koch didn’t reveal the details, he did admit turning down approaches from other sides to join Leeds.
“At some point I told my agent that I could actually imagine moving to Leeds despite several requests from other clubs. The more I dealt with the club, the more it worked for me. The club has big plans for the next few years,” the 24-year-old explained.
Koch also gave an insight into how the Premier League side convinced him to sign for them.
“Leeds sent me a kind of PowerPoint presentation. In it I could see exactly how coach Marcelo Bielsa and the scouts analysed me and how I fit into the Leeds style of play,” Koch added.
“For example, I was given video sequences in which game situations from Leeds were cut parallel to those from at Freiburg from last season.
“I’ve really never had anything like it. I had the feeling that I’ve never been analysed in such detail, especially since I wasn’t even a player at the club. That really impressed me and was a key factor in my decision.”
Koch has started for the Whites in all their league matches this season. However, his first few minutes on the pitch as a Leeds player didn’t go well as he conceded a penalty early in the game against Liverpool. The Reds ended up winning the tie 4-3.
“I thought, ‘Okay, my first few minutes could have gone better.’ It just happened like that. Salah shot at me. The ball bounces to the arm. As a player, you often can’t do much. I just kept focused and focused on my game,” he said.
