Anger over Leeds’ Augustin transfer ruling

Journalist James Marshment has slammed the Leeds United transfer fiasco with Jean-Kevin Augustin, calling the deal an ‘absolute disaster’.

Earlier this week, it was reported (via BBC Sport) that the Whites will have to pay German club RB Leipzig €21m (£18.4m) after their appeal against FIFA’s ruling was dismissed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Augustin joined Leeds on loan in January 2020 with an £18.4m obligation to buy if they secured Premier League promotion. The club managed to do just that but disputed whether the ‘purchase obligation’ for Augustin had been triggered as the pandemic had interrupted the campaign.

On top of that, the Frenchman only featured a handful of times for the Whites, making just three substitute appearances in a campaign where he did not even start a game, but CAS has upheld the original decision – although Leeds will look to appeal.

In light of the situation, Marshment took to Twitter to say: “There’s good transfers, there’s bad transfers and then there’s JK Augustin. What an absolute disaster! Someone should make themselves accountable there. Think the verdict is harsh on Leeds and while I expected us to lose, I don’t think it’s right we’re made to pay the full fee.”

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TIF Thoughts on Jean-Kevin Augustin and Leeds United…

In the 2019/20 season, the forward was involved off the bench in three Championship matches, while also being included in a match-day squad for another, but failed to make an impact as he left the Whites without scoring or claiming an assist.

Seeing as Leeds now look likely to pay Leipzig £18.4m for a player that managed under 50 minutes of playing time, it’s not hard to see why Marshment has dubbed it all as a ‘disaster’.

Journalist Richard Jolly worked out that it will cost the club £375,510 for each of the 49 minutes Augustin played, £6.13m for each of the three shots he had, or £3.68m for each of the five passes he attempted.

These are quite remarkable statistics, and while you can understand why the Premier League outfit will be desperate to avoid paying such fees, it does seem as if their fate is now sealed following this latest ruling.