OPINION
Once the scapegoat for everything wrong at Leeds United, the transformation of Victor Orta’s reputation continues.
The United director of football was the brainchild of the Marcelo Bielsa hire and has also been the driving force behind a series of 2018 signings that were shrewd and are looking good value.
One of those arrivals was Izzy Brown, the attacking midfielder who joined on a season-long loan from Chelsea late in the summer window.
Given that Brown has yet to make his debut after arriving while three-quarters of the way through his rehabilitation from the cruciate knee ligament injury sustained in January, some might wonder why on earth Orta brought in a crocked player who would miss nearly half of the season.
It is a deal that makes more sense in light of some detail in the Yorkshire Evening Post.
The newspaper explain that “Brown’s deal also included a clause where Leeds would only contribute towards his weekly wage once he was back fit and available for first-team selection”.
Smart work from contract and transfer negotiator Orta, and the Leeds hierarchy.
This mitigated their risk on the deal and ensured their wage bill would only be affected when the player is able to contribute to Marcelo Bielsa’s side.
That time could now be sooner rather than later after Brown made his comeback on Friday by playing 45 minutes of Leeds Under-23s’ 3-0 defeat to Birmingham City.
He is still likely to be many weeks away from first-team selection but it is a crucial step in his recovery.
Leeds could have a major asset on their hands as we approach the turn of the year, a time when the wheels started to come off under Thomas Christiansen in 2017.
With Bielsa’s side well placed for a promotion challenge and Orta learning from past mistakes, things are looking better than at any time in the Andrea Radrizzani era.
Who would have thought a year ago that the Spanish recruitment chief’s reputation was in danger of going through the roof?