Leeds United have £10m issue to deal with ahead of summer transfer window: View | OneFootball

Leeds United have the finish line in sight in the Championship, as they look to return to the Premier League at the first sign of asking - but regardless of which division they end up in, Daniel Farke has an issue to deal with ahead of the summer window.

The Whites currently occupy top spot in the second-tier, albeit with a game in hand over Leicester City who could leapfrog them by as little as a point; and should they return to the top-flight, there will undoubtedly be a huge summer ahead in terms of recruitment and preparing to avoid relegation.

Plenty of positions need filling with quality, but with Leeds sending a lot of last season's stars away on loan in preparation for a quick return to the top-flight, Farke must choose who he wishes to keep in the squad ahead of their survival push. And the axe could well fall on Rasmus Kristensen, with Roma seemingly unwilling to sign him on a permanent deal.

Why Leeds United will have to deal with a £10million issue in the summer

Kristensen joined Leeds from Red Bull Salzburg at the start of last season, and whilst he played a relatively big part in their campaign, his efforts weren't enough to stop Leeds suffering relegation to the Championship after three years in the top-flight.

Kristensen was subsequently loaned to Roma in the summer, with Djed Spence, Connor Roberts, Luke Ayling and Archie Gray all doing their bit to excel at right-back - and that has worked so far, with Gray especially shining in the right-back slot and Roberts fitting in perfectly to the side after his January deadline day loan move from Burnley.

Kristensen will return to Leeds once his loan spell at Roma is up - but he is now unlikely to be in Farke's plans, with Gray excelling at right-back, alongside Roberts potentially being open for a transfer with Leeds likely to swap places with Burnley as the Clarets continue to struggle in the top-flight.

That leaves Farke with a real predicament. Kristensen isn't fancied by Roma, and he could well be third-choice right-back by the time he returns to west Yorkshire - and so the dilemma is finding a club who are interested enough to stump up a fee close to the £10million that Kristensen cost from Salzburg two years ago.

However, an even bigger problem may unfold in that Kristensen could also be unwilling to leave.

The 20-cap Denmark international has the right to battle for a place in what is considered the best in the world, and so he may drag his heels and refuse to move in order to force his way into the team. Of course, that could mean that Roberts may not sign a permanent deal, and Leeds would be worse off in terms of transfer money to spend - which leaves Farke in a dilemma.

Rasmus Kristensen transfer latest

Kristensen won’t be on Roma’s radar, according to Corriere dello Sport. He’s had a mixed campaign in the Italian capital, and Roma don’t have an option to buy clause in his deal - which makes negotiations much more difficult to pull off from Leeds’ perspective.

As a result, they’ll have to spend more time and effort on resolving his future in the summer, though there could be a positive in that he impresses in pre-season and properly rivals Gray for the right-back slot.