LEGGY’S KEY FOR U’S ‘ON AND OFF PITCH’
ATTACK may sometimes be the best form of defence, but Cambridge boss Shaun Derry insists clean sheets are the priority at the moment for his side.
The U’s had their fourth shut-out of the season in midweek against Crewe, having also prevented Crawley, Colchester and Morecambe from hitting the back of the net.
And, with Leon Legge, 32, and Greg Taylor, 27, at the heart of their imposing defence, Derry is under no illusions where Cambridge’s strengths lie.
“Good teams have a lot of clean sheets,” he said. “What it does is give you that platform in games where one goal is going to win it.
“They have been like rocks a number of times throughout this season. We’re early in the season, but we’ve got four clean sheets already.
“Greg Taylor is such a commendable player because he’s reliable and, when you’ve got that reliability and the leadership qualities of Leon Legge at the back, you can forge those partnerships.
“Leggy’s of huge importance to this club because he’s got that leadership. He’s the captain and he leads by example, not just on Saturday afternoons and Tuesday nights but throughout the week.
“He brought up his century of games last weekend and he knows he’s been very good for me. For almost two years now, he’s been a stand-out player.”
At the other end of the pitch, Derry will have to cope without forward Ade Azeez, 23, who has a knee ligament injury.
He said: “We’re going to be missing Ade for a sustainable amount of time. He’s not yet been to the specialist to get the absolute kind of end result.
“It is a knee ligament, but we’re not expecting him back in the near future.
“This is going to be one which puts him out for a large amount of time.”