Giuseppe Bellusci, He's Leeds

There was concern from many Leeds fans that with the influx of so many foreign players into the squad the club would somehow lose some of its character, some of its ‘Leedsness’. But if one of the new imports shows us we need not be worried it is Giuseppe Bellusci. We love a good label; we are the beaten, we are the damned, we are dirty, we are Leeds and we’re proud of it and Bellusci certainly seems proud to be Leeds.

Signed from Calcio Catania this summer the 25 year old defender was given the nickname of 'The Warrior' by fans of his former club and it’s clear why. He is not shy of a robust challenge and has already picked up one red and four yellow cards in his first eight games for Leeds. We love a player who gets stuck in, harking back to the Revie era with players like Bremner and Giles, the Wilknison days of Vinnie Jones and David Batty and of course Batty was partnered in midfield during his second spell by Olivier Dacourt.

It’s not just about being a hard man though, the most loved of those players are the ones who showed skill as well and Bellusci has brought some Italian flair to the Leeds defence. He looks composed on the ball when bringing it forward and has the vision and ability to play some great passes. His absolute belter of a free kick against Bournemouth and calm, composed finish against Sheffield Wednesday have proved he knows how to find the back of the net too.

He seems to get what being Leeds is all about and is building a good relationship with the fans. When Sheffield Wednesday’s Chris Maguire tried to wind up the home crowd in the Kop Bellusci squared up to him and defended the fans. In the same match Bellusci also ran over to the crowd at the end of the game and gave his shirt to a disabled fan. It’s a small gesture in the general scheme of things but it shows he cares about the fans and is the kind of action that make players cult heroes.

There are negatives though, his positioning hasn’t been great some times, his red card against Watford and Wes Thomas’ goal for Birmingham being prime examples of that. He does average more than one four every game too. That said his stats were good against Birmingham, making nearly as many clearances as the entire Birmingham defence. He just seems to lack that composure in defence which he exudes in attack. He has still only played eight games in the Championship and that composure may come.

So while he may split the opinion of fans, what is clear is that with some sections of the Elland Road crowd he’s fast becoming a favourite.