Leeds United debut under Marcelo Bielsa and high Stoke City hopes feel far away as summer move nears - View | OneFootball

Liam McCarron is closing in on a move to Northampton Town after disappointing stints at Leeds United and Stoke City.

Highlights

Liam McCarron is closing in on a move to Northampton Town from Stoke City, after a disappointing time since leaving Leeds United to join the Potters.

McCarron is a former Scotland youth international, and was among the many prospects recruited by Leeds while transfer dealings were overseen by Victor Orta. He was signed from Carlisle United, having made an early first-team breakthrough at Brunton Park.

McCarron joined Leeds from Carlisle back in the summer of 2019, having already made 20 first-team appearances for the League Two side. Preston-born McCarron came through the Carlisle academy, and made his first-team debut for his boyhood club at just 17-years-old in 2018 against Morecambe in the EFL Trophy.

Aged 20, he then went on to feature regularly for Leeds in what was then the U-23 team. McCarron impressed as both a left-winger and left-back for the development squad, and was frequently named on the bench in the Premier League that season, appearing ten times as an unused substitute in the matchday squad.

At that stage, it was clear that he was a promising player, but in need of regular games. He looked as though he may be on the verge of a senior breakthrough after those inclusions in the matchday squad. However, despite impressing at youth level for Leeds, he managed just one first-team appearance for the Whites before being allowed to depart in 2022.

Liam McCarron's failed Stoke move

He joined Stoke City for an undisclosed fee, penning a three-year deal in June 2022, but has since made just five appearances at senior level despite appearing in the Premier League with the Whites under Marcelo Bielsa.

The 23-year-old has appeared just once for the Potters over the course of the last two years. He has featured more frequently for the club’s U-21 team and also had a loan stint at Port Vale last season.

The former Scotland U-19 international is out of contract next summer, so Stoke needed to make a decision soon. Be that to either give him a chance in the first-team squad for the upcoming season or sell him for a small fee to a team where he will play regular games to kickstart his career.

He has recently been on trial at Northampton and talks over a move to Sixfields are thought to be at an advanced stage, per Football Insider. Stoke are open to letting McCarron go this summer, with talks underway with Northampton over a move.

He had opted not to travel with the Championship club for their pre-season camp to Ireland, instead competing for Northampton last weekend in a friendly against Norwich City recently, and another against Kings Lynn Town.

The versatile wideman can operate as a full-back, wing-back, or winger, and will hope that a new permanent home can restart his career in League One.

McCarron's potential with Leeds under Marcelo Bielsa

After turning down an improved contract offer from the Cumbrians, he signed for Leeds on a three-year contract in July 2019 and soon became a regular in the Premier League 2, with Marcelo Bielsa even handing him his senior Premier League debut in a 4-1 defeat to Arsenal at Elland Road in December 2021.

That proved to be his only senior appearance for the club, as he joined Stoke on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee in the summer of 2022, perhaps in the hopes of a first-team role. After not transpiring, the aforementioned loan to Port Vale last season was then sanctioned.

McCarron did not settle and made just four appearances in his first two months at Vale Park, with only two of those in League One, before he returned to the Stoke fold in January 2023 to play in four U-21 games and seemingly had his time with the Valiants cut short.

It appears as though neither Alex Neil nor Steven Schumacher have been keen on the player, after Michael O'Neill brought him to the club following early signs of promise and untapped potential under Bielsa with Leeds.

His lack of senior game time has been an issue for his development, making just one appearance in all competitions in his two years with the club. The 23-year-old needs to be playing in order to carve out a career for himself and now Northampton are offering him that pathway.

It's not how he or Stoke had hoped things would pan out, but a restart is what he needs. Especially when, for context, he is the same age as Ethan Ampadu. The Leeds captain is closing in on 250 professional appearances for club and country, and dwarfs McCarron's career total of just 26. Development isn't linear, and there is every chance he can get his career back on track.