Leeds United winger Crysencio Summerville feels that West Yorkshire is the place for him, a key factor in driving his decision to remain at Elland Road despite interest from other clubs surrounding him this summer.
That is according to journalist Ben Jacobs, who also labels the young Dutchman a “model professional” who has a strong relationship with his manager, Daniel Farke.
Jacobs’ comments come after a 4-1 demolition of West Yorkshire rivals Huddersfield Town at Elland Road over the weekend, with Leeds’ blistering first-half display – one in which they looked like scoring every time they attacked – providing the perfect response to a disappointing 1-0 defeat away at Stoke on Wednesday evening.
Much like during their comeback 3-2 win against Norwich City at Carrow Road the week prior, Summerville was once again integral to the Whites’ triumph over the Terriers on Saturday, scoring two goals.
The Dutchman is a player in red-hot form, having netted six goals and assisted four times so far this season. Whilst his side do sit third in the table, with a gap of nine points between them and second-placed Ipswich Town, there is a general consensus amongst the Leeds fanbase that Summerville will be key if they are to reel in the Tractor Boys and runaway league leaders Leicester City.
Whilst Leeds will no doubt be braced for offers for Summerville in the January transfer window, it is understood that the 22-year-old is content in West Yorkshire and will not seek to force a move elsewhere.
Leeds is “the best place for Summerville to be”, says Jacobs
Discussing Summerville’s present situation at Leeds, Jacobs compared his circumstances to that of fellow winger Wilfried Gnonto, who attempted to push for a move away from Yorkshire to Premier League club Everton late into the summer transfer window.
“A January exit is by no means guaranteed because he is integral to Leeds at the moment. Naturally, there’s going to be interest, as there was over the summer. Everton, Bournemouth and Burnley, for example, have all looked at the player.
“But it’s a very different situation to Wilfried Gnonto, who ended up staying but tried to force his way out of the club and then eventually apologised to Daniel Farke. Angus Kinnear, Leeds’ chief executive, played a big role in smoothing that situation over.
“With Summerville, he was a model professional and has a very strong relationship with Farke. In many ways, it was the player himself that wanted to stay at Leeds last summer, rather than drive an exit.
“That is highly significant in all of this because Summerville really likes Leeds and is settled at Leeds. He felt, over the summer, that Leeds was the best place for him to be, which means that Leeds have got a bit more control over this one than with Gnonto.”
Leeds travel to first-placed Leicester on Friday evening in what already looks like a crucial game despite being so early in the season, with a victory for Daniel Farke’s side providing a significant boost to the Whites’ automatic promotion hopes this term.
