Tony Dorigo has claimed in his Yorkshire Evening Post column that relegation to the Championship could see the emergence of five Leeds United youngsters – including the likes of Archie Gray, Darko Gyabi and Mateo Joseph.
Relegation is likely to see a mass exodus of players, as predicted by club captain Liam Cooper. There will be plenty of clubs coming in for Leeds players and it is up to the club whether we decide to bring in new signings, or not.
Leeds do have the benefit of having plenty of exciting young players on the verge of the first team, or already in it. Whether they are Championship ready is another question. Out in Argentina, £5m man Gyabi is shining for England.
The 20’s were knocked out of the World Cup last night in the last 16, suffering a 2-1 loss to Italy. But Gyabi made his mark. Mateo Joseph also impressed. Gray scored for England U17’s at the European Championships this week.
They are three players highlighted by ex-Leeds defender Dorigo, who says relegation could give our young stars the platform to go on and be key for Leeds. He also named Charlie Cresswell and Joe Gelhardt as breakthrough stars.
“Looking at those young players [Gyabi, Gray, Joseph, Cresswell, Gelhardt], there’s a lot of promise there, that there really is some good talent. It is very different, of course, stepping up to men’s football and into that first team.
“A lot have tried and failed, so I don’t think we should be putting too much pressure on those young lads but there’s no doubt that those sort of players will be important parts of the squad. Let’s see how they’ve been developed.”
Dorigo says relegation could see emergence of five Leeds youngsters
Cresswell is an absolute no-brainer. With Robin Koch likely to go, and Diego Llorente, Leeds are not awash with right-footed central defenders. Cresswell impressed at Millwall in the Championship last term, scoring five goals.
For Gyabi and Gray, much depends on the current midfield options. Weston McKennie has already left. Tyler Adams and Marc Roca are generating interest and Adam Forshaw’s contract expires this month. They need a pathway.
One or two of those leaving helps Gray and Gyabi. It is a similar story for Joseph and Gelhardt. They might need Rodrigo to go, which looks likely. Patrick Bamford remains but it is interesting to see if he has had enough at Leeds.
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