Leeds United let him go on a free in 2024, now he’s being compared to Franz Beckenbauer

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Leeds United have a number of club icons in the last couple of decades, despite spending the majority of the last 20 years in the Championship.

The majority of fan favourites at Leeds United emerged during the Marcelo Bielsa era of the club. The Argentine transformed the careers and trajectories of many players between 2018-2022.

The likes of Kalvin Phillips and Pablo Hernandez played the best football of their careers for Bielsa but few players epitomised hard work, determination, and consistency as much as Luke Ayling did in the majority of his seasons in West Yorkshire.

Having joined from Bristol City for a nominal fee, he quickly became a fan favourite and one of the first names on every team sheet. Not only that, but he regularly captained the side.

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Luke Ayling stars for Middlesbrough after leaving Leeds

Despite being Liam Cooper’s vice-captain, Ayling took the armband on plenty of occasions in both the Premier League and Championship and remains a club icon despite his departure in January of last year.

He helped Leeds to that famous promotion in 2020 to end their 16-year exile, but the defender was already a consistent player prior to that. That said, his game went to another level in the top flight during their first season.

Ayling was perhaps the player who embodied the Bielsa team the most in terms of his core values. Even now, he is evidently someone with a lot of affection and time for Leeds still after Ayling congratulated Dan James after Leeds’ promotion.

Ayling also sent Willy Gnonto a message last season to keep his eye on Leeds, despite being deep into his Middlesbrough career now. His longevity has been impressive, given that he has recently turned 34 and continues to play Championship minutes.

Back in 2018, Ayling was a part of Marcelo Bielsa’s first XI at Leeds, but his decline at the back end of his career with Leeds was disappointing, leading to that Boro switch in January 2024 on an initial loan.

Now playing most of his minutes as the right-sided centre-back in a back three, Ayling’s current side are top of the Championship and unbeaten.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	MiddlesbroughMiddlesbrough	6	5	1	0	11	4	7	16
2	Stoke CityStoke City	5	4	0	1	9	3	6	12
3	Bristol CityBristol City	5	3	2	0	12	4	8	11
4	LeicesterLeicester	5	3	1	1	8	5	3	10
5	West BromWest Brom	6	3	1	2	7	6	1	10
6	CoventryCoventry	5	2	3	0	15	7	8	9

They defeated West Bromwich Albion 2-1 last night and Ayling was awarded Sky Sports’ Player of the Match award. Per FotMob, he was also Man of the Match with an 8.1 rating and an assist.

Following the win, on Ayling’s Instagram, his teammate George Edmundson was among those to respond and he compared Ayling to German football icon Franz Beckenbauer.

He said: “The long haired Beckenbauer”, while Jem Karacan stated “Aylesta” as a comparison to the equally legendary Spain and Barcelona hero Andres Iniesta.

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Luke Ayling’s comments after Leeds’ promotion in 2025

Although no longer a part of the furniture at Leeds after ending his almost nine-year association, Ayling knows the majority of the squad well and he was delighted with their promotion.

Speaking briefly about Leeds in an interview at a racecourse, Ayling said: “I’m a Leeds fan now. I absolutely love the city. I live here now, so.

“I’ll probably live here the rest of my life. I’m pleased for them.

“Hopefully, we can shoot back and get to where I think Leeds should be.”