Leeds United

Exclusive: Ex-Leeds ace Newsome drops wage bombshell

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Former Leeds United star Jon Newsome has dropped a bombshell in an exclusive interview with This Is Futbol, claiming that goalkeeper Kiko Casilla was the highest-paid player at the club last season.

The goalkeeper has been usurped as the club’s number one by Illan Meslier, who has become a genuinely superb goalkeeper under the tutelage of manager Marcelo Bielsa.

Casilla has made just three senior appearances this season, against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League, Crawley Town in the FA Cup, and Hull City in the EFL Cup.

Do you think Casilla should leave the club?

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Yes, he is finished

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The former Real Madrid stopper has been embroiled in controversy throughout his time at Elland Road and was found guilty of using a racist slur against Charlton Athletic star Jonathan Leko during a Championship game last season.

Casilla is now firmly the No.2 at the club but having joined the club from Real in 2019 on a four-and-a-half-year deal, it seems as though the Whites threw plenty of money at him to convince him to make the move.

Newsome expects Leeds to try to offload him this summer and has revealed that he topped the wage bill last season.

It is not clear if he has been usurped since, with a number of big-money signings such as Rodrigo and Raphinha arriving last summer, but the revelation will be an uncomfortable one given his current lack of minutes.

Speaking exclusively to TIF, Newsome said: “Yeah, I think it’s a difficult one. I think he is a big ticket player.

“I’m led to believe, last season, he was probably the highest paid player at the football club.

“So your number two goalkeeper is sat on the bench, and he’s costing you a hell of a lot of money.”

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