Angus Kinnear explains why loan clauses have been included in the contracts of Leeds players

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Leeds United chief executive Angus Kinnear has explained the LUFC Trust in a meeting on Thursday the reason why players had loan clauses included in their contracts – a “trade off” against wage reductions.

Following relegation, it emerged that a number of Leeds players had loan clauses included in their deals. It meant that in the event of relegation, they could go on loan if wages were paid in full. Seven have left.

Rasmus Kristensen and Diego Llorente to Roma, Robin Koch to Frankfurt, Marc Roca to Betis, Brenden Aaronson to Union Berlin, Max Wober to Gladbach and Jack Harrison to Everton. All leaving on loan.

More could materialise. Tyler Adams is set for a £23m plus add-ons move to Bournemouth. Teen star Willy Gnonto has been told he must stay and does have not a loan clause in his contract – thankfully.

Luis Sinisterra does – and Leeds have one remaining slot left in terms of over-21 foreign loans. Gnonto, Sinisterra and Helder Costa are training on their own. Kinnear explained why loan clauses were included.

“It was financially prudent to ensure players would have had to accept significant wage cuts. Angus explained that their insistence was on these exit and/or loan clauses as a trade off for the wage cuts.

“Their position was that if the club were to sign the players and fend off competition for their signatures, exit clauses needed to be written in. Players that left would have preferred to leave on permanent deals.

“But values had fallen behind both their exit clauses and, book value. For profit and sustainability/FFP reasons it is problematic to sell players below book values. The loans have saved over £30m in salaries.

“The hope is that their sell-on values would increase again (from the low position of a relegation season) during a year playing on loan, meaning the club will be able to generate profits from sales,” Kinnear said.

Kinnear on why loan clauses were included in Leeds contracts

It is understandable that Leeds needed to include these wage reduction clauses. Some of the wages that the players were on are simply not sustainable in the Championship. A £30m saving is impressive.

It is perhaps, also fair enough, that selling the likes of Aaronson or Roca right now would have seen Leeds make an immediate loss. Hampering FFP. An impressive loan might just help raise their value.

A return to the Premier League, at the first attempt, helps that too. But it is still a huge frustration that Leeds have had to wait until now to sell, and send sellable assets on loan, before finally investing.