Leeds United discovered a gem but he was sold for £6m, how they need him now: View | OneFootball

Lewis Cook was sold to Bournemouth for a bargain fee, with Leeds United desperately needing a player like him right now.

Lewis Cook was once one of the most exciting young prospects in English football after breaking through at Leeds United, with the AFC Bournemouth midfielder's recent performances serving as a reminder of what could have been at Elland Road.

A lot was thought of Lewis Cook when he was first on the scene at first-team level at the age of just 17, where he would hope to follow in the footsteps of James Milner, Fabian Delph, and more in making the grade at Leeds in midfield at a young age.

He amassed 85 appearances for the club in just two seasons, earning himself a move to Bournemouth for a bargain fee of just £6 million during the Massimo Cellino era of the club. However, injuries have hindered the 27-year-old from reaching his early potential at Elland Road.

Even in spite of that, he has been a Bournemouth player for eight seasons now and has made over 200 appearances for the Cherries and was even capped by England during that time. His last and only cap came in 2018, but Cook's recent displays have caught the eye of many Premier League spectators.

Lewis Cook's rise in English football

Over eight years after leaving Leeds, Cook would be a huge asset now for Leeds, as a player to add some depth into their midfield. That possibility is a fantasy without top-flight football, but the midfielder is putting in some of the best performances of his senior career under Andoni Iraola.

Cook may now be 27 and may well have less experience under his belt than many would have envisaged, after serious injury lay-offs hampered him between 2018 and 2022. But Iraola's style of play both in and out of possession is well-suited to his strengths. Leeds fans know all about the energy he can bring to a midfield, and he’s also excellent from a technical point of view.

In another reality, he has moved another step up the food chain to a team competing regularly in Europe, but the aforementioned injuries have meant Bournemouth are now the beneficiaries in the long-term. The summer of 2016, when Cook was brought to the south coast, was certainly an exciting time to be connected with Bournemouth.

The season before that had just seen the Cherries compete in the top-flight of English football for the first time in their history. In doing so, the club had secured a 16th-placed finish that ensured they retained their Premier League status for the following campaign.

Looking ahead to that 2016/17 season, the club will have been keen for a productive spell in the market, in order to put together a squad capable of remaining competitive at the top level. One of those to join the club was Cook, who joined from Leeds, with the then 19-year-old having spent all of his senior career to date at Elland Road as a product of their famous academy.

He had the world at his feet at the time and showcased the reasons for the investment quickly, even if he was not always a regular starter and injuries held him back. In more recent seasons, his fitness has maintained and, when fit, Cook has been a consistent feature in various Bournemouth sides, helping to influence play from the centre of the park, and protecting the backline behind him.

His intensity and ability to screen, combined with his press-resistance and ability to carry the ball, makes him a unique profile in some ways, and one which Leeds would love to have now. Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev's long-term injuries have left them short of technically secure midfielders who also combine that with strong discipline out of possession.

Ao Tanaka is the closest thing to that, but without Ampadu and Gruev, Leeds' promotion hopes have been seriously dented. After a good window in terms of midfield signings, bad luck has meant they are thinner in terms of numbers than they had first imagined, with Leeds’ recent team news representing a major concern.

Two separate knee issues, with one more serious than the other, is something Cook knows all about, but is the reality at Leeds, with two key players currently expected to be out until January and March respectively. Daniel Farke would no doubt love to have a player of Cook's ability and skill-set as part of his double-pivot options. He is exactly the kind of player that would thrive in the absence of two natural defensive-minded midfielders.

That isn't to say Cook is a defensive midfielder, but such is his quality that he would blossom at the base of Leeds' midfield. For now, the midfielder has remained a key figure in Bournemouth's squad, helping them to re-establish themselves in the Premier League after relegation not long ago, and to register their record points tally last season under the tutelage of Iraola.

The money Bournemouth paid to sign him from Leeds has been worth every penny and more. On the flip side, Leeds will perhaps be wondering if they got the short end of the straw over eight years ago when selling Cook to the Dorset outfit. They will have to find other solutions to their midfield issue in 2024, but seeing him flourish serves as a reminder of what they are missing from their engine room.

Leeds' ongoing midfield crisis has compounded the pain of losing Cook for such a low value fee in today's market, even with the persistent issues which hindered the 27-year-old from reaching the ceiling most saw him having during his time at Elland Road.

Leeds cannot turn back time, though, and they will be watching Cook perform very well in the Premier League. The 2024/25 season is seeing him put in the best displays of his career to date, with some of his metrics competing with the elite midfielders of Europe, underpinning his sheer quality.

According to FBref, Cook is in the 98th percentile of midfielders for interceptions per 90, whilst his assists and expected assist numbers are both above the 80th percentile. He is at his peak and in his prime, with the ex-Leeds man thriving for Iraola.

He has a goal and two assists in the league already, and has been captain on two occasions, showcasing his leadership and other intangibles in the dressing room are also valued. Cook is surely well on the way to a second England call-up in this kind of form.