Phil Hay says 26-year-old Leeds man could now leave on loan, is out of contract next summer

Add as preferred source on Google

Leeds United defender Robin Koch could leave on loan this summer despite his contract at the club being up in 12 months.

That is according to Phil Hay, who was speaking on the latest episode of The Square Ball Podcast, where he claimed ‘people close’ to Koch have told him a loan move is very much a possibility.

This comes after reports from his native homeland of Germany stated Koch would be allowed to leave on a free transfer this summer due to a clause in his contract after relegation.

However, those claims were disputed by the local Leeds media, who insisted that fee would be received if Koch was to depart this summer.

That said, it is difficult to see Leeds recuperating the £13 million they paid in the summer of 2020, given his contract situation and the club’s demotion to the Championship.

Hay says Koch could leave on loan

Despite the aforementioned contrasting reports, it actually feels as though it is somewhere in the middle, based on what Hay has heard.

A loan move this summer would allow Leeds to get Koch’s wages off the books, but equally would also see them lose him for nothing in 12 months’ time.

He said: “With Robin Koch, he also has 12 months left. My understanding with this is he cannot leave on a free transfer now simply because Leeds have been relegated.

“But what has been said by people close to him is he could go on loan and if he goes on loan for a season, he would be at the end of his deal and becomes a free agent at that point and can be signed for nothing.

“The only point in that is the club taking him on would have to pick up his wages so it wouldn’t as though there is no cash involved and totally free.

“What I can’t tell is whether a loan offer is made, whether Leeds are obliged to accept it. That’s certainly what has been indicated and we will see, but as far as I’m aware, he cannot leave for free tomorrow.”

Unless there is some sort of clause in his contract that stipulates a loan bid must be accepted, this would be a senseless move from Leeds’ perspective.

Koch is the type of player Leeds must look to get a fee for and sanctioning a temporary deal so he can leave as a free agent next summer would be poor business.

Leeds need to ensure they receive the money they deserve for these players, so it can be reinvested into rebuilding the squad.