In just under a week, Leeds United’s midfield has taken a hit with injuries to Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev. Despite this setback, could the Whites choose to hold off on making moves in the free-agent market?
Ampadu is unlikely to play for the rest of this year, but reports indicate he may return in early 2025 after suffering a knee injury in last weekend’s match against Coventry City. Leeds is aware it will be without its captain for an extended period, but it probably didn’t anticipate losing another midfielder just days later.
In the recent 1-1 draw against Norwich, Gruev had to leave the match early due to a knee injury, and there’s currently no timeline for his recovery. Leeds likely relied on a Gruev-Tanaka partnership to help offset Ampadu’s absence, making this a significant setback for the team.
Leeds doesn’t plan to enter the free agent market just yet
While the Yorkshire side are urged to pursue midfielders as the position becomes thin following the injuries this week, they might not plan on doing so. Manager Daniel Farke shared their stance on whether they plan on pursuing a free agent to add more depth to the midfield and noted what needs to happen for Leeds to sign a player who doesn’t have a club.
“If I’m honest, I’m not a big believer in doing signings in October, but let’s see,” Farke said (h/t Yorkshire Evening Post). “So first of all, we wait a little bit and hope for a positive outcome from the scan of Ilia and if there’s really a shocking diagnosis and he is out for months, then of course, we have a look on it, but I can’t confirm that we would do then something so then everything would come together – otherwise just a waste of money and a waste of energy.
“It could sometimes even be bad for the whole group, because it sends also sometimes a sign to some other players who could be then in the spotlight: ‘okay, we don’t trust you that much,’ so it must be a big coincidence that someone is really available who could help us. So let’s wait and see.”