Leeds United: Cardiff City ace that Russell Martin loves could be Georginio Rutter replacement | OneFootball

Leeds are yet to replace Georginio Rutter but could do so by striking a deal for Cardiff City star Rubin Colwill

Leeds United are yet to replace Georginio Rutter following his summer switch to Brighton and Hove Albion, so they could do a lot worse than pursuing a move for Cardiff City's Rubin Colwill.

The Whites were powerless to prevent myriad high-profile player exits in the wake of last season's agonising playoff final defeat to Southampton.

Crysencio Summerville, Archie Gray and Glen Kamara all departed before Rutter saw his £40 million release clause triggered by the Seagulls in August, leaving Daniel Farke with yet another significant void to fill.

Leeds ultimately fell short of recruiting an out-and-out attack-minded midfielder in the Frenchman's mold, and you do have to wonder just how much of a difference a marquee acquisition in this area of the pitch could make in potentially helping them over the line at the second time of asking in their bid to return to the Premier League.

After the summer window slammed shut, it was revealed by controversial Whites chief executive Angus Kinnear that Leeds had identified the likes of James McAtee, Fabio Carvalho and Emi Buendia but to no avail, while they also saw a bid for Sheffield United's Gus Hamer turned down.

In the meantime, USMNT international Brenden Aaronson has returned to the fold following a mixed loan spell with Union Berlin to fill Rutter's position in the team, so to speak.

He's currently playing in that advanced midfield role behind the striker and has been fairly impressive this season, going some way to rebuilding a relationship with supporters which had looked beyond repair after he left as part of the 'bomb squad' upon Leeds' relegation from the Premier League.

Aaronson deserves his flowers, that's for sure. But his skillset just isn't remotely similar to Rutter's, and swooping for a player with the technical paralells to orchestrate that level of creative impact that he enjoyed last time out must be one of a few calls of duty for Farke and the 49ers ahead of the next window.

Leeds United should replace Georginio Rutter with Cardiff City's Rubin Colwill

Rubin Colwill has steadily established a glowing reputation at Championship level, where his undoubted natural ability has now been noticed across the division.

Although the 22-year-old is yet to truly set the divison alight in the vein which Rutter did to earn his move back to the Premier League, for example, his tantalising footballing profile and underlying numbers beneath the face-value goals and assists are indicative of a player perfectly capable of stepping up to that mantle.

Colwill's development has perhaps not played out according to the script. After making his professional debut against Coventry City in Feburary 2021 and earning a shock call-up to Wales' EURO 2020 squad months later, Colwill has endured his fair share of trials and tribulations.

Injury setbacks have never been too far away owing to a stunning, unprecedented growth spurt while the high managerial turnover at Cardiff has hampered his progression and the two seasons which the side spent battling against relegation to League One before last season hardly afforded them ample scope to field young, off-the-cuff talent on a routine basis.

Moments of unbridled individual brilliance have always been within Colwill's arsenal but he has now stepped up a level this season to add consistency to his game and become the creative centerpiece of the team under interim boss Omer Riza, who has handed the Welshman requisite creative license to roam into pockets of space, show wide for possession and get on the ball to make things happen as often as possible with very limited defensive responsibilities.

A natural number 10, Colwill's elegant ball-carrying quality makes him a tricky customer for the most seasoned Championship defenders.

Evasive and deceptive on the eye, his rangy 6'5 frame is at odds with the balletic elegance in which he can glide past opposition players with the ball seemingly glued to his feet.

He's deceivingly agile, too, with his close control in tight spaces crucial when teams double up on him out wide - which happens more often than not.

Colwill's physical make-up brings the natural power and athleticism needed to charge past opponents at pace and maraud forwards in possession, but his deftness of touch and deceptive body feints enable him to do so in an exquisitely-smooth manner.

He's at his best when he has the license to get on the ball and create chances through his progressive dribbling or line-breaking passing ability, with long diagonal balls into the channels his specialty.

There are many parallels, then, particularly with the mutual ball-carrying quality, between Colwill and Rutter.

Of course, Colwill is not at the level of the Seagulls ace just yet, hence why he's still with Cardiff in the Championship, but his improvement this term from previous seasons has been exponential and the two fundamental elements of his game which had been lacking somewhat - end product and consistency - have gone right up, too.

The most persuasive factor with Colwill, mind you, is the potential upside at play. His profile is broadly unique, at least by Championships standards, and there has long been the school of thought that his potential knows no limits if he is accomodated accordingly in the right tactical set-up which affords him ample freedom.

A frightening natural talent, Colwill is the sort of player who would be elevated in a better, more intricate team with increased attacking initiative, and Leeds' showcased ability to buy low - relatively, of course - and sell high adds further logic to the deal.

Cardiff wouldn't be looking to part ways with Colwill at all, let alone cheaply, but every player has a price and this one in particular could have an eye-watering value in the future - Leeds could do much, much worse than trying to make themselves the next recipients of his rich potential.

Southampton manager Russell Martin's Colwill thoughts should convince Leeds United to make a move

Now for a glowing endorsement from the manager who outsmarted Farke in last season's Championship playoff final. Russell Martin tends to divide opinion but few who have closely observed Colwill in action could really find much argument to level towards the ex-Swansea City boss.

Naturally, Martin saw plenty of the attacking midfielder during his days down the M4 with Swansea and was reminded of his talents during Southampton's 5-3 Carabao Cup second-round victory over the Bluebirds in August, where Colwill scored a first-half wondergoal and was arguably the outstanding player on the pitch against a strong Saints side.

Cardiff supporters are rightly worried that Martin, so often their tormentor-in-chief during past editions of the South Wales Derby, might try to get one last scalp over them by luring Colwill away to Southampton in January.

The midfielder is surely destined to have a top-flight career if all goes to plan, and it's no wonder why there is genuine anxiety about that situation when you read into Martin's comments on Colwill following the aforementioned cup tie.

He said of Colwill: "Their [Cardiff's] first goal is a moment of brilliance from a player I've liked for a long time. He is a really talented player.

"I think he needs to become a really good Championship player first [before thinking about the Premier League]. He hasn't played enough games and he needs to get himself in the Cardiff team regularly.

"But I watched a lot of him for Wales under-21s when I was [at Swansea], I watched most of the Wales under-21s and first-team games. I used to bump into his dad all the time while travelling and we used to have a chat."

"I'm not his manager, so I don't see him day to day, but he has to make sure he becomes the first name on the team sheet for Cardiff because he has moments like tonight and I've seen him have a few moments over the last couple of years that a lot of players just don't possess. Really special.

"But he has to make sure he can use that special talent by being on the pitch more than he is now. I hope I haven't spoken out of turn, but that would be my assessment."

What Martin references there is game-changing, X-Factor ability. Colwill possesses the quality to turn it on instantly in rich abundance, just as Rutter does too. You can never keep him quiet for too long, then, and the moments which Colwill is perfectly capable of are indeed special.

Cardiff will hope they can continue seeing those moments for as long as possible and there are sure to be other teams fancying a swoop too, but Leeds have money to play with following Rutter's sale and sourcing a more direct replacement could make an almighty difference in what division they'll be preparing for come the end of the season.