Leeds were reunited with Georginio Rutter in unsavoury circumstances on Saturday.
The man who left Leeds for Brighton in a £40m deal back in August 2024 played his first game against the Whites on Saturday, unfortunately helping the Seagulls claim a 3-0 win.
Despite the defeat, there was still a nice moment between Georginio Rutter and Leeds fans after the final whistle.
Leeds fans applaud Georginio Rutter despite disappointment of 3-0 loss
The Frenchman made his way over to the away section after Brighton defeated Leeds, spending some time in front of his old side’s supporters and applauding them.
A telling response was then witnessed as Leeds fans clapped him back, showing just how popular Rutter is among the fanbase – who easily could have ignored him after such a miserable afternoon on the south coast.
After all, the 23-year-old hardly left in acrimonious circumstances, with Leeds simply the victim of Brighton choosing to trigger his £40m release clause in the wake of that Championship play-off final defeat against Southampton.
Rutter – who Ethan Ampadu slapped before the game – was even “emotional” on the day of his departure, according to Daniel Farke at the time.
What Georginio Rutter refused to do after Brighton went 3-0 up
The man born in Plescop really does seem to care about Leeds.
The Brighton No.10 even owns a horse which he has partly named after Leeds as well as his current club – Brighlee.
Even after playing a key role in the third goal for Brighton, Rutter opted not to celebrate, looking to be almost sheepish for inflicting misery on his former club and Farke – who Leeds fans have slammed for failing to make changes at the interval.
While it was nice to see this respect from Rutter, it does little to change what was a concerning performance from Leeds, and a very worrying display of in-game management from Farke.
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