Leeds United really failed to make the most of Arsenal transfer agreement - player now playing in Champions League: View | OneFootball

Leeds United's 2019/20 season will be fondly remembered by the club's supporters for years to come as the team won promotion to the Premier League for the first time since 2004.

After failing to win promotion the season prior in heartbreaking circumstances, the relief was palpable at the club when they finally got over the line, and not even the Covid lockdown could stop Leeds' loyal supporters from celebrating the achievement.

Members of the squad will be immortalized for years to come, but there is one player who's gone onto bigger and better things and is a bit of a forgotten member of Leeds' 2019/20 squad.

Eddie Nketiah is a regular in the Arsenal team who are looking to win the Premier League, and he was at Leeds during their promotion-winning campaign, but never quite made the desired impact for Marcelo Bielsa's side, which in hindsight seems crazy.

Eddie Nketiah's time on loan at Leeds United

After scoring for Arsenal in their final league game of their 2018/19 Premier League season, Nketiah was loaned out to Leeds United for the 2019/20 season in what was seen as a huge coup for the Whites.

His debut for the club came in a League Cup tie against Salford, and he found the back of the net in a comfortable 3-0 win away from home.

The dream start at Elland Road continued, and he came off the bench to score the winner in his first league appearance against Brentford, sealing a late 1-0 win for the club.

It was soon three goals in four appearances after another League Cup goal, this time against Stoke City, and Nketiah was showing just why he was so highly-rated at Arsenal.

However, despite his great form in front of goal, Nketiah couldn't force his way into the Leeds league starting XI, and he had to settle for a place on the bench with Patrick Bamford being the preferred striker.

Despite three goals in his four games, Nketiah would bag just two more for Leeds all season, before being recalled by Arsenal in January with his parent club unhappy about his lack of minutes.

In total, Nketiah scored five times in 19 appearances for Leeds, but made just two league starts, which ultimately led to Arsenal bringing him back to the Emirates.

It all worked out okay for Leeds in the end as they won the league, but you feel as if Nketiah had a lot to offer and could have scored bucket loads of goals had he been given more chances at Elland Road.

After returning to Arsenal in January 2020, Nketiah featured in 17 Arsenal games, nearly the same amount as he played for Leeds during the first part of the season.

With the club undergoing a development phase under Mikel Arteta, Nketiah continued to see more playing time at the Emirates Stadium in the seasons that followed, playing 29 first-team games during the 2020/21 season, and 27 during the 2021/22 campaign.

However, from the 2022/23 season onwards, the striker has been a regular in Arteta's side, and he played 39 games last season as the club reached the top four, and looks like bettering that figure this season with Arsenal alive in the Premier League and Champions League.

The player was capped by England in October 2023 in a win over Australia, and has become a very good Premier League player despite only being 24 years of age.

It was clear that Nketiah had the talent when he was at Leeds, but perhaps you wouldn't have expected him to be playing a key role in a side competing for the title and the Champions League just a few seasons later.

In hindsight, Leeds will feel they failed to make the most of having a player of Nketiah's quality on their books during the 2019/20 season and perhaps should have given him more chances, despite Bamford leading the club to Premier League promotion.

The club's striker issues since 2020/21 up until this season have been well-documented, and having made more of Nketiah and retained a good loan relationship with Arsenal might have bridged a gap.