Phil Hay of The Athletic has revealed that Crystal Palace midfielder Jadan Raymond was “on his way” to Leeds United but decided to stay with the south London club after their academy was upgraded to category one status.
The Eagles, along with the Whites saw the status of their academy upgraded recently and the journalist has suggested that as a result, Raymond may have decided against making the move up to Yorkshire.
Leeds reportedly spend around £4m on their academy each year and stand to receive an increase in central revenue for youth development as a result of their new status. The change also means that their Under-23s are expected to compete in the Premier League 2 next season (via The Athletic).
Speaking on a recent episode of The Phil Hay Show, he said: “Leeds were very interested in Jadan Raymond at Crystal Palace, a 16-year-old midfielder, who a month or so ago was saying no to a deal from Palace and was on his way, and Leeds were very keen and were speaking to him.
“Palace have been upgraded to category one this week, as have Burnley. They and Leeds are the three clubs who have made the cut this time around.
“Raymond has actually taken up a two-year scholarship with Palace now and I can’t say this for sure, but you do wonder whether the fact that it is now category one there, as it as Leeds, whether there is just that bit more appeal and whether he thinks that actually, having been there so long, it’s the right thing to do by staying.”
Were you pleased to learn the Leeds United academy has been granted category one status?
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Whilst Hay couldn’t definitively confirm the academy status was the sole reason Raymond decided against a move up to Leeds, judging by his comments, he appears to be confident the improved academy status at Crystal Palace played some part in the decision.