Patrick Bamford’s Leeds United future is uncertain heading into the final year of his contract at Elland Road, having started just one game all season.
Bamford’s wages have increased since promotion with Leeds United as well, meaning he is a big financial burden for a player not featuring regularly. He played just 18 times in 2024/25 and could end his seven-year stay this summer.
One option could be a newcomer to the Championship, with Jamie Vardy and Bamford both linked to Wrexham at various points in the campaign, and the summer may well see more rumours swirl.
There have been mixed reports regarding Bamford and Wrexham for a while now but his latest comments could have put an end to those claims linking him to the Red Dragons.
Patrick Bamford’s England hope amid Leeds uncertainty
Wrexham bosses have played down the Bamford links, including Humphrey Ker’s Wrexham verdict on Bamford. However, the Leeds centre-forward has also outlined his Premier League and England ambition since then.
He was asked by Ben Foster on the ‘Fozcast – The Ben Foster Podcast’ about his time with England. Bamford said: “I remember the day before [his one and only England cap], I was told I was going to start.
“And it was on my birthday as well, so perfect. This is just the way I’m wired, the one thing I remember is I should have scored. The ball got crossed, dropped, blocked on about the penalty spot — but bouncing for a sideways volley.
“I should have hit it into the ground. There were still people in the way, but it’s one of them where you know if you hit it in the ground and it squirms through. That’s the one thing that eats me up about that. I loved it. It was good.”
Foster: “If you look back now, then, is it one of your big football moments? So if somebody said, ‘what’s the best moment of your career?’ Is it the England moment?”
“That’s it, yeah. And I said to Michaela [his wife], obviously, doing all this work in the off-season, it’s still in the back of my head — next year I’m going to play and I’m going to try and get back to being in contention.
“If I do then, arguably, I’d say it’s probably even better than what I’ve done now. Obviously, after the injuries. Up until now that’s the biggest thing.”
It seems as though he wishes to get back to playing regularly in the Premier League and for England. That will ruin Wrexham’s chances for now. Having said that, Bamford is open to an MLS switch at some stage and perhaps his mindset could change in the future.
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Patrick Bamford’s England and Premier League dream is fanciful
This season was the first of Bamford’s career with Leeds where he didn’t score. Injuries and disruption are partly to blame for that, but it’s unlikely that he is ever the same player he once was.
| Season | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 2018/19 | 25 | 10 | 2 |
| 2019/20 | 47 | 16 | 4 |
| 2020/21 | 38 | 17 | 8 |
| 2021/22 | 10 | 2 | 2 |
| 2022/23 | 31 | 6 | 4 |
| 2023/24 | 36 | 9 | 2 |
| 2024/25 | 18 | 0 | 0 |
17 Premier League goal-hauls are a thing of the past and the 31-year-old is unlikely to be anything more than third-choice in the top flight — that’s if he remains at the club.
Talk of England or regular game time in the Premier League feels fanciful, but it’s obviously great to see his self-belief and Bamford backing himself to get back in.
Bamford’s powers are evidently on the wane, as shown from the game time and goals drying up over recent years. A Championship or MLS move could be his best bet to spark his career back into life.
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