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George Bennett

Leeds United defender Max Wober names World Cup-winning duo as his footballing idols

Leeds United defender Max Wober has selected World Cup winners Mats Hummels and Xabi Alonso as his biggest idols.

Wober initially started out as a forward during his youth career at Rapid Wien, before gradually evolving into a central defender.

That transition also saw him deployed as a central midfielder for a time, and Wober looked to the legendary former Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich midfield orchestrator Alonso for inspiration.

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"When I played in midfield, it was clearly Xabi Alonso. I thought the way he played football was terrific," Wober told Kicker in 2022.

Since embarking on a professional career as a defender, Wober has viewed Hummels as an important role model. Hummels was a crucial member of Jurgen Klopp's famous Borussia Dortmund side which collected back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012.

He then lifted the World Cup with Germany in 2014, and went onto win a further three league titles at Bayern Munich.

Wober added: "With the move to central defence, it became Mats Hummels. He has a really good left foot, plays very dangerous balls in the build-up game and thus also provides assists again and again. I also like his type, he's just a down-to-earth personality."

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