The most important thing for a team after promotion is figuring out what to do with their squad. This is the problem Leeds United have to get spot on ahead of next season.
Since earning automatic promotion last week, there have been rumours flying around about players arriving at Elland Road. Goalkeepers continued to be linked with a move to Leeds every day, with the latest being Chelsea star Djordje Petrovic.
An underrated part of setting your squad for the Premier League is finding which players are good enough to make the jump. The gap in quality between the Championship and the top flight continues to grow every year. Finding the weak links in the team to replace increases your chances of promotion exponentially.
QUIZ: Can you name the missing player from these 10 famous Leeds United photos?
Leeds United to allow first team star to listen to offers
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Over the past few seasons, Leeds have had issues with depth at fullback. But the resurgence of Junior Firpo, the surprising form of Sam Byram and the recent arrival of Jayden Bogle seemed to have solved the issues long-term. Unfortunately, this summer, Byram and Firpo are out of contract.
And in a surprising turn of events, Leeds are open to letting Junior Firpo leave the club. This is according to Football Insider, who claim that the technical team don’t see the 28-year old as good enough to play in the Premier League. Former scout Mick Brown shared what he has heard about the situation so far:
“Firpo is one of the players I hear Leeds would let go,”
“He’s proven to be a good option in the Championship, but there are doubts about the step up.
“They’ve got a few players like him there and they’ve got to make decisions about how many of them are good enough to be Premier League players.
“After the season ends, they need to assess their squad and be ruthless in their decisions.
“Players who aren’t going to be good enough will be moved on. Firpo may well be one of those.”
Are Leeds right about Junior Firpo?
Firpo is a fantastic fullback; this season he has been a big part of how Leeds United play. Flying down the left flank, he has been a pillar of attack. Contributing four goals and nine assists is a big plus for any team.
Credit: Fotmob
However, the defensive side of things are still lacking. Firpo continues to be a question mark when the opponents target him. Fotmob rank him near the bottomof the league for tackles won. Among left backs, he ranks in the 12% percentile for the statistic – which means he is one of the worst defenders at winning tackles.
