Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola has addressed the long-term future of Leeds United loanee Jaidon Anthony.
As part of the deal that took Luis Sinisterra to the South Coast on deadline day last summer, Anthony made the switch the other way, despite having been heavily involved at Bournemouth early in the season.
Since moving to Leeds, Anthony has found regular game time hard to come by and has therefore started just two Championship matches, the last of which came all the way back in October.
With that in mind, it feels highly unlikely Leeds will look to sign him permanently, regardless of the division they end up playing in next season.
In an interview with the Daily Echo, Iraola was asked about what he plans to do with Anthony and opened the door for him to be potentially reintegrated back into the Bournemouth first team.
Iraola opens door for Anthony return
He said: “Yes, I have always said it. Jaidon, I like him as a player and I rate him a lot as a person. He was very involved with us in the first game of the season in August.
“I think he is a very good player to have in the squad, because he’s valuable in different positions and is very reliable. When you play Jaidon, I think you know he will give the maximum always, because his work-rate is very good.”
Anthony has shown glimpses, particularly in the FA Cup, of what he can do but has been the victim of such a good season from Crysencio Summerville, with both strongest off the left.
He produced two assists in the recent defeat at Chelsea and also scored a great goal in the previous round against Plymouth Argyle, but it has not been enough to force his way in.
However, if he was to return to Bournemouth, there would certainly be no ill-feeling from Leeds fans, as Anthony has always worked hard when given the chance, and never kicked up a fuss about his lack of minutes.
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