Not many would have predicted Patrick Bamford’s form. Linked with a place in the England side, Bamford has netted 10 goals in 17 Premier League appearances – after claims from the likes of David O’Leary and others that the Yorkshire club lacked the firepower in just Bamford following promotion. Now, Carlton Palmer has made an intriguing claim about Bamford.
The 27-year-old tops the goalscoring charts at Elland Road and will be frustrated he only has 10. On the latest Leeds United podcast, Bamford even told Jermaine Beckford. Matt Lewis and Emma Jones that he was “fuming” following the 5-0 win over West Brom as he had failed to score. He did lay on a neat assist for Jack Harrison to find the top corner.
His form has seen his name mentioned by Gareth Southgate, while it is likely to see Bamford keeping an eye on the race for the Premier League golden boot. He has shown he can score any type of goal – a well-placed header against Sheffield United, a gorgeous curling effort at Aston Villa or getting the better of Virgil van Dijk against Liverpool.
Ex-Leeds and England midfielder Palmer has been impressed with the former Chelsea man. He thinks his form is good enough to have attracted suitors with the January window in full flow, and suggests Leicester City would be the perfect fit for Bamford given the Foxes need competition for Jamie Vardy – and eventually a man to replace the retired England ace.
“Well, Leicester would be a perfect fit for him because of the way they play,” Palmer told Football Fan Cast. “He’s having a fantastic season so I can’t see Bielsa letting him go, and it would take an awful lot of money for them to let him go.
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“Why would you let a player go who’s been bang in-form for you and playing the way that he’s playing? If you were Bamford, why would you want to go? Why would you want to leave the man that’s resurrected your career?”
So, would Bamford be a good addition for Leicester? He is a very different striker to Vardy – given that Vardy loves to run in behind and is renowned for his blistering speed and one-touch finishing. Bamford is more of a hard-worker and likes to drop deeper rather than playing on the last man – creating goals just as he did for Harrison at West Brom.
But under Brendan Rodgers, Leicester do like to keep the ball and while they can play on the counter, they are also good at retaining possession and breaking opposition down – the latter suits Bamford. While there is suggestions that Bamford has any suitors, you never know.
