Former Leeds United striker Noel Whelan believes Whites debutant Tom Pearce grew in confidence as the game wore on against Sheffield Wednesday at the weekend.

Leeds head coach Paul Heckingbottom threw the 19-year-old left-back to the cauldron of the Yorkshire derby on Saturday and the defender produced a confident debut performance in the 2-1 loss.




While he could do little as the Whites suffered another demoralising home defeat, the youngster earned did earn accolades for an accomplished opening outing in a Leeds shirt.

Left-back has been a problem area for Leeds this season and with January signing Laurens De Bock out injured, Pearce will hope to get more opportunities in the coming weeks.
 


And Whelan indicated that the defender could stay in the team as the youngster played better and looked more confident as the minutes wore on during his debut.

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The former Whites star told BBC Radio Leeds when asked about Pearce: “He got better the longer the game went on, became more confident.”

The defender, who started his career in the Everton academy, was first named in a matchday squad earlier in the season against Newport County in the FA Cup.