Conor McGilligan, speaking on the One Leeds Fan YouTube channel, has criticised Leeds United’s failure to sign a central midfielder this summer.
While Adam Forshaw’s return to Premier League action has provided optimism for Leeds supporters, rumours linking the Yorkshire outfit with more central midfielders continue to circulate.
Marcelo Bielsa could do with adding someone with more options to his central midfield to compete with the likes of Kalvin Phillips, Mateusz Klich and Forshaw, and reports have suggested that they could move for Reading’s John Swift, who is out of contract in the summer.
Now, McGilligan has lamented the fact that Leeds failed to sign a central midfielder in the summer transfer window, while praising the quality and standard of the teams within the Premier League this season.
McGilligan said: “This season with Leeds has massively hurt us, just because it’s been a real dose of reality, I think, for a lot of fans and how absolutely ruthless this division can be. It’s the best Premier League there’s ever been. Let’s make no bones about it.
“This is the best standard we’ve ever seen. So it was always going to be difficult for Leeds, and with what we did in the summer, for me, it wasn’t enough, it was nowhere near enough.
“We identified, with Michael Cuisance last year, that we needed a central midfielder, we didn’t rectify that. We’ve been massively helped by Adam Forshaw, but we’re still lacking so much in that midfield and we’re been hampered by injury after injury after injury. So, we almost didn’t prepare for it.”
TIF Thoughts on Leeds central midfield options…
While Adam Forshaw has made a welcome return from a two-year hip problem, there are still concerns amongst Leeds fans that they remain light in that area, while Reading ace Swift being heavily linked with a January transfer move to Elland Road, a player who originally caught Marcelo Bielsa’s eye back in 2020.
Swift has been an influential figure for the Royals already this campaign. With eight goals and eight assists to his name in 18 appearances (via Transfermarkt), it’s easy to see why he’s a man in demand.
Therefore, it’s little surprise to see the 26-year old, who is old out of contract at the end of the season, attracting a huge amount of interest from teams both in the Premier League and the Championship. Indeed, as per the Sheffield Star, Burnley, Wolves and Sheffield United are all reported to be considering moves alongside Bielsa’s side for the Royals talisman.
Perhaps Swift is a solution to the woes McGilligan describes, as it is clear that their transfer strategy to this point has done little to allay his fears over the lack of quality in the Leeds squad amid their current struggles.