Thomas Christiansen pleaded to improve Leeds United record breaker - he never got the chance | OneFootball

Thomas Christiansen was desperate to work alongside Chris Wood at Leeds United for longer than just three games together.

Thomas Christiansen didn't have Chris Wood for long prior to his Leeds United exit, but the ex-Whites boss wishes that he had retained the striker's services at Elland Road in 2017/18.

Wood had to make his name in the EFL after moving from Leicester City to Leeds in 2015 for a fee of around £3 million, which proved to be a bargain for the Whites. That's despite a hit-and-miss first season at the club, but Garry Monk managed to get the best out of the centre-forward.

Wood played for Leeds between 2015 and 2017 before departing for Turf Moor and a Burnley side in the Premier League, which is the division he has been in ever since. The 32-year-old remains a talked-about figure despite the fact he left the club seven years ago, partly due to his exploits at Leeds and since leaving the club.

Chris Wood's impact at Leeds

The New Zealand international stands at 1.91m (6'3") tall and is an intimidating figure to come up against for any centre-back at any level. He has excellent aerial ability, whether that’s from open play or set-pieces. His threat in the air is something Leeds fans will remember from his two years at Elland Road.

He’s scored plenty of goals in the Premier League since leaving Leeds in 2017, averaging just under 10 per season, proving his consistency and durability since then. However, he put himself on the map with his performances in West Yorkshire.

His first campaign at Leeds was steady, but it was under Monk that Wood thrived, in part thanks to playing in a setup which played to his strengths. Pablo Hernandez pulled the strings and the likes of Pontus Jansson, Kyle Bartley, and Luke Ayling provided defensive stability for a side that finished seventh thanks to Wood's impressive haul.

He bagged 30 goals in all competitions that season, which has seldom occurred in Leeds' history previously. It meant Wood would write himself into the history books alongside John Charles and Jermaine Beckford as players to have hit 30+ in a campaign for Leeds.

Wood was so much more than just a goalscorer for Leeds as well, with his presence crucial for pinning the opposition back to act as a focal point. Although he may lack some mobility to run the channels, he also works tirelessly for the team. His goals that year earned him his Premier League chance, despite starting the first few games of the 2017/18 season at Elland Road under Christiansen.

He even bagged one against Bolton Wanderers in a 3-2 win on the first game of the season for Leeds, and Leeds offered Wood a new three-year contract in an attempt to keep him at the club amid interest from Burnley. However, he then ruled himself out of the match against Sunderland on 19 August.

The Clarets then spent a club-record fee of £15 million to acquire his services and to give him his first serious shot at regular Premier League football. Wood has not looked back since, whilst no Leeds player has come close to scoring 30 in a single season since Wood's departure.

Thomas Christiansen fought hard to retain Chris Wood at Leeds

Things could have been very different for both Leeds and Wood that season, with Christiansen desperate to keep the New Zealand international beyond the transfer deadline in 2017. His side got off to a flying start and fell away by January, but that season could have ended in vastly differing circumstances had Wood remained until the end and scored at the rate Leeds knew he was capable of.

Speaking via The Yorkshire Post, Christiansen outlined his desire to build the side around the record-breaker and make him better. He said: “I believe I can make him better and he should be better. He should not stay at this level.

“It is a good level of course if you score so many goals, but you should always want to raise your target and be ambitious in all that you do.

“He is also a very young player still. He has many years of football ahead and he, for sure, will have the same target as I have.

“Who would not want a player who has scored 30 goals? I rate him very highly.

“I am happy he came out the other day in the press saying that he will look forward to working with me and that is a very good sign.”

Of course, it's impossible to know what exactly would have happened had Wood and Christiansen worked together for longer, but the ex-Barcelona and Villarreal striker knew a few things about scoring goals himself, and that Leeds team lacked a No.9 of true calibre like Wood.