BBC pundit Noel Whelan has said that Swansea winger Daniel James was “outmuscled” in the Championship clash at Elland Road on Wednesday night and claimed he would look better in a Leeds shirt.
Leeds got the final word after a deal for Swansea winger James broke down dramatically on deadline day. They won 2-1 with James hardly getting a look-in and should have won by more, with a late penalty making it squeakier than it should have been.
Talking on BBC Radio Leeds (Friday, 6pm), Whelan delivered his verdict on the big showdown as James turned out against the team he should have been playing for on Wednesday night.
“I think he was muscled out of it,” Whelan said. “Leeds were that good that he wasn’t given an opportunity to show how good he is.
“There were glimpses of what he can, but Leeds were too good to see what they were going to sign. He would look better in a white shirt.”
OPINION
There was a brilliant photo doing the round after the match of a very miserable looking James surrounded by a few beaming Leeds players. He was very keen to join Leeds and had recorded his introduction video at Elland Road after completing his medical. He was the victim of some internal politics at Swansea but Leeds chief executive Angus Kinnear confirmed that his side would be pursuing the young winger again in the summer. Whelan thinks he’ll look better in a Leeds shirt and he probably thinks the same. If he keeps his head down and plays well, he could complete his dream move and hopefully play for Leeds in the Premier League next season. Everyone loves a happy ending – except maybe for Swansea fans and definitely Huw Jenkins, the Swansea chairman who refused to sign the paperwork on deadline day. The person who suffered the most is James himself and that’s the ultimate tragedy of this case. Leeds fans thought he might come back to haunt them at Elland Road on Wednesday, but he didn’t get a look-in.