Leeds' Max Wober talks to Sky Sports about falling in love with England at the darts as a teen at Ally Pally, his move to Elland Road and being a leader; watch Leeds vs Man Utd live on Sky Sports Premier League and Main Event from 1pm on Sunday; kick-off 2pm
Sunday 12 February 2023 14:41, UK
As Max Wober sits down with Sky Sports for his pre-Manchester United interview, he's barely had 12 hours to recover from Leeds' pulsating 2-2 draw at Old Trafford.
Life is non-stop for the 25-year-old centre-back now he's in the Premier League following his £11m move from Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg in January. After this, he is taking his parents to the airport before turning his attention to Sunday when Leeds face United again, but this time at Elland Road, live on Sky Sports.
Wober's parents will not be able to watch that game in the flesh, but they had a front row view at Old Trafford as the Austria international delivered an assured performance at centre-back. His goal-line clearance to deny Alejandro Garnacho an equaliser with the scores at 1-0 was lost in the chaos of one of the season's more thrilling encounters but was pivotal to Leeds coming away with a draw, which moved them a point clear of the relegation zone.
"It was amazing for my parents," Wober tells Sky Sports. "They were in the first row directly in the middle of the crowd of the Leeds fans. Normally when you get tickets for your parents they are normally in the VIP section where all the families sit, but they were directly in the middle and they loved it.
"They really got to feel how much it means to the Leeds fans."
It becomes a little easier to understand why Wober's father was ready to brave it in the away end with the Leeds fans at Old Trafford when you learn of his mini obsession with the England team.
"When I was between 10 and 16 years old in all the family pictures he was wearing an England shirt," Wober says. "He bought a new England shirt when he was here now, so he kept this tradition going on."
Wober himself embodies the spirit of the Leeds support and has already endeared himself to the fanbase with his tough tackling and passion on the field. After his block to deny Garnacho, Wober celebrated as if he had scored a goal as his team-mates queued up to pat him on the back.
Aside from his obvious defensive qualities and ability to play out from the back, helped by having played further up the pitch in his youth, Wober possesses natural leadership qualities that have been hard to miss since his arrival at Leeds.
Wober was name-checked by interim boss Michael Skubala as one four players in the dressing room that have stepped up following head coach Jesse March's sacking on Monday. He has hardly been at the club a month, but is already among the big voices in the squad along with Liam Cooper, Luke Ayling and Illan Meslier.
"I've always had it in me," says the former Ajax and Sevilla defender, "I've been a captain all my teenage years and always tried to be a leader, it doesn't matter which country I play in.
"I think it's just a part of my personality that I take care of my team and bring them into shape, be loud, organise and tell everyone my honest opinion. That's just part of me and that's what I have tried to bring in since I've been here."
Wober first got wind of Leeds' interest when he was on holiday with his girlfriend in the Maldives just before Christmas. He was taking a chance to unwind during the Austrian Bundesliga's winter break and was at dinner as his agent tried to reach him with an urgent message.
Then Leeds head coach Marsch, who had already signed Wober for Red Bull Salzburg in 2019, wanted to know if the defender was ready to reunite at Elland Road and needed a response.
"We were at the restaurant in the hotel and I had no Wi-Fi or anything," he says. "When I came back to my room and as soon as I got the Wi-Fi connection again I had loads of messages from my agent."
Marsch was going into a meeting with Leeds' sporting director Victor Orta and owner Andrea Radrizzani. Targets for the January transfer window were top of the agenda.
"Jesse really wants to bring you in and wants to speak about you to the club," Wober was told by his agent. "So if you give this the green light, it would help massively."
Wober only had a couple of hours to mull over the opportunity with his family and girlfriend. But he soon gave his response: "Let's make my dream come true."
England and the Premier League has always had a special place in Wober's heart. As teenagers, he and his friends visited London twice to watch the PDC World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.
They would combine the trip to Ally Pally with a Premier League game on Boxing Day. Tickets to Vicarage Road were provided by former Watford and Austria defender Sebastian Prodl.
"It was a bit of a tradition to go to London over Boxing Day and we always try to watch some football and we are all a little bit of darts fans so we decided to get some fancy dress and have a laugh," he says.
"It was amazing. That was the first time I fell a little bit in love with the culture, both football and darts."
Wober, who was trying to break into the first team of his boyhood club Rapid Vienna in Austria at the time, added: "I was 16 or 17, it was my goal was to be a professional footballer first, but also to play in the Premier League, the biggest league in the world.
"This was definitely a motivation to watch these games as a young boy. To feel the atmosphere and watch the best players in the world, this definitely helped me."
These experiences gave a young Wober the chance to see the stage he now graces. The defender will be hoping he can keep Leeds up this season and continue his Boxing Day tradition in 2023 - but this time on the pitch.
Watch Leeds vs Man Utd live on Sky Sports Premier League and Main Event from 1pm on Sunday; kick-off 2pm.
