OPINION
Victor Orta’s stock at Leeds is sky-high at the moment after a brilliant season under new manager Marcelo Bielsa. Orta was the architect behind the maverick manager’s move to Elland Road and it’s earned him a reprieve after fans were after his blood in the 17/18 season.
Orta made a string of buys in the summer of 2017 that didn’t work out at Elland Road and many of them are plying their trade on loan moves, some more successful than others.
One player who has made a go of it is 25-year-old striker Caleb Ekuban. He signed for Leeds for just over £500,000 from Chievo Verona but only managed two goals in 21 games before being packed off on loan to Trabzonspor last summer.
He’s done rather better there – scoring eight goals and adding three assists, and his agent was quoted this week as saying that the Turkish club “will buy him from Leeds”.
Football Insider have since reported that Ekuban has agreed personal terms on a deal that will see him make his move to Trabzonspor permanent in the summer, and Leeds fans are split by the news.
The report claims that the deal will net Leeds in excess of £1million in total (£170k loan fee, plus £860k permanent), which will see them double their money on the player.
But some Leeds fans think he will be worth as much as £10million if he carries on in the same vein at Trabzonspor. Others, however, think he wasn’t good enough for the Championship.
Either way you look at it, though, it’s good business for Leeds, turning a profit on a player who flopped at Elland Road.
Here are the best reactions from Leeds fans:
https://twitter.com/SmithLeedsUtd/status/1117809983540822017
https://twitter.com/Tonylufc28/status/1117878103596863488
Think there’s a player in there. Not necessarily for us, but I think he’ll have a storming season out of nowhere at some point and smash it
— Mateusz (@mathautomatic) April 15, 2019
https://twitter.com/Tonylufc28/status/1117879465973960705
He had natural pace like sacko and young so think we were a bit jumping gun to agree a fee that can’t be backed out on as we get €1mill for a player being touted at €10mill 1 season later
— bielsa’s lucky blue bucket ???? (@delwright21) April 15, 2019
https://twitter.com/BigJimmy_V/status/1117755905590931456
https://twitter.com/yonyteboah/status/1117756374702788608
https://twitter.com/leedsufc61/status/1117889461755568133