This past summer saw some moves that really surprised Leeds United fans. And according to club chief Robbie Evans, one of the departures was known months in advance.
The Whites managed to offload a lot of players that they had no plans for.
Leeds cleared their wage bill by selling Jack Harrison and terminating Max Wober’s contract. They also got a decent fee from the sale of Joe Gelhardt, and recouped their money on Isaac Schmidt.
Players who were not in Daniel Farke’s plans also found their new homes.
Joel Piroe joined West Ham and Largie Ramazani ultimately got a deadline day move to Burnley.
Leeds United knew first team star was going to leave this summer
Pascal Struijk
Credit: Imago
One major transfer kickstarted the window over at Leeds United; Pascal Struijk.
The defender was a standout for the club last season, and reports made it clear that he would be the target of many top clubs. He ended up joining Brighton very early in the window.
Reports then emerged that he wanted to leave for a new challenge, and turned down a new contract to stay.
Leeds managing director Robbie Evans corroborates this in his recent interview with The Athletic. The club chief admits that the hierarchy knew of his decision and started preparing his replacement in advance.
”We were prepared for that possibility all season, and did tons of work on left centre-back last year. Once we knew he was leaving, we began to work on the replacement. Having that news early was helpful.”
Evans also added that the deal for Pascal was very helpful to navigate PSR and SCR regulations this summer.
”Last August, we were prepared for it to be two if it had to be because the goal was to go as hard as you have to go to build the best possible squad to survive. That was a risk we took on last summer.”
”We knew that was going to be a possible issue in June, depending on the outcome of the season, and so Pascal was the solution for that. Thankfully, it’s just one player, not more than one.”
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Pascal Struijk did not leave Elland Road on good terms
Leeds fans will always have a soft spot for Struijk; even though he was signed from the Netherlands, he came up through the ranks.
He impressed quickly at youth level and in the U21s before getting a chance in the first team. Many fans will remember how shaky he was initially, but he developed into a fantastic player.
In the year before he left, some of the things he said rubbed fans the wrong way.
The interview where he mentioned plans to leave for a ‘bigger’ club and mentioning his ambitions for joining Brighton can easily be seen as a slight at his former club.
Fans booed him when they faced Brighton last week, and it might be the same when he returns to Elland Road later this year.
