Leeds United: Meslier and Rutter situations will be on Daniel Farke's mind | OneFootball

FLW outline two major issues for Daniel Farke to resolve at Leeds United as as soon as possible this summer.

Highlights

Leeds United will be sweating on the futures of vital players after failure to gain promotion at the first time of asking, whilst numerous players are also returning from loan, with most of those not expected to feature in Daniel Farke's plans.

Leeds are seeking a return to the Premier League again in 2024/25, which would see a number of changes this summer in the transfer market. Not least, as there are plenty of players who left the club due to loan clauses in their contracts, who will need to have their futures at Elland Road resolved as quickly as possible.

The Whites have sold Archie Gray this summer, but have decisions to make on many current squad members between now and September, too. Other high-profile departures are to be expected to help balance the books and give Leeds the necessary funds to recruit more players of their own on top of Rodon.

Here, we take a look at two of the biggest issues the club will be looking to resolve as we head deeper into July and the transfer window.

Illan Meslier next out after Archie Gray

The Daily Mail has reported that the Whites may have to generate £100 million in player sales following their failure to secure promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking. That highlights that Gray's sale will not be the only one out of Elland Road this summer.

It has been revealed that the lack of credible offers for Crysencio Summerville led to Leeds needing to sell Gray as the PSR deadline approached, according to The Athletic.

As the youngster is one of their own, selling him was of massive help to the club's financial issues. Under the Profit and Sustainability rules, selling academy players, who you didn't have to pay a fee to obtain, is much more handy for the books than selling someone that you previously paid a fee for.

Leeds' necessity to sell the 18-year-old would have been lessened if they had sold their star winger or someone else such as Willy Gnonto before the end of last month, as per The Athletic. They have reported that Leeds didn't get any offers for the Dutchman that both they and he wanted to take.

The report also states: "The deal also puts the club in a really healthy position in terms of PSR, with any further exits this summer on the club’s terms."

Now, that may be true, but in order to be aggressive in the market this summer, Leeds are likely to require further sales to give them a budget worthy of competing for the automatic promotion places in the Championship. That could see players such as Summerville, Gnonto, Georginio Rutter, and Illan Meslier as the most likely options to sell.

They are the club's biggest assets, and/or the players who are capable of banking Leeds healthy financial games if required. Farke and the club's hierarchy must decide which of those is worth selling, and who is easiest to replace as well.

Meslier may have been Leeds' number one for the last four seasons, including under Farke this term, featuring in almost every Championship fixture, but the goalkeeper's days could be numbered.

However, the Whites will be aware that Meslier is a player that they can easily turn a profit on, with Victor Orta having spent around £5 million on the Frenchman during the summer of 2020 to bring him across from Lorient. His PSR 'book value' will be close to zero, meaning they could be in for a big payday in a position that is easily upgradeable this summer.

Leeds require a goalkeeper who more is consistently more confident and assured between the sticks. That provides an extra incentive for Leeds to cash in during an upcoming window, especially given that he enters the final two years of his deal.

According to outlets La Provence and Foot Mercato, Marseille have been weighing up a move to sign the goalkeeper this summer, with Pau Lopez closing in on making the switch to Italian outfit Como. As first reported by French journalist Santi Aouna, the French side that are soon to be managed by Roberto De Zerbi and are keen to bring Meslier back home to his birth country.

And it has been claimed by the Daily Mail that Leeds value Meslier at close to the £20 million mark, which would certainly free up funds in the budget to take an aggressive approach to the transfer window.

Signing a playmaker to support Georginio Rutter

One area that needs restructuring is the line of three behind the centre-forward. Leeds have players easily capable of thriving on the counter-attack with their transitional threat and carrying and dribbling ability; but Leeds require a player who is better at unlocking doors against deeper blocks.

That is where they are expected to be stronger next year, as they continue to dominate the ball in the Championship. Leeds' problem is that the likes of Dan James and Brenden Aaronson are ball-to-feet players, and they require a profile of footballer who is more of a playmaker who will opt to pass first, with low blocks a particular issue for Farke in 2023/24.

The likes of Summerville and Gnonto have similar issues, albeit they are more dynamic dribblers in one-against-one situations with the full-back. Leeds have plenty of forwards of that type and require more profiles similar to Georginio Rutter, who can both dribble and create via line-breaking passing.

Either way, if they sign a creative player to play in the middle, or to use Aaronson there, it means Leeds should be doing all they can to keep Rutter this summer and play him as a wide forward, as opposed to shoehorning him into the team in a role that doesn't suit his strengths, or to keep him centrally - where he often turns the ball over in an area that is inherently riskier for Leeds defending transitions than out wide.

The 22-year-old could be the answer to a lot of issues in that area, should most of the wingers the club are expecting to depart see themselves out of the exit door, such as Gnonto and Crysencio. It would save them from making a signing out wide if they restructure their forward line, so that Rutter is a winger.

Retaining Rutter, who was reportedly the subject of a rejected £30m bid, is paramount; he is a 'moments player', so he is imperative to be in the team in some capacity. However, he needs support with someone else who will look to get their foot on the ball and use their vision to create chances. A pass-first footballer rather than a dribble-first magician could be an even better player and difference-maker next year for Farke and Leeds in that central role than Rutter.

They need someone who has the ability to unlock doors when a team sits in, capable of playing high-risk/high-reward passes, and giving Leeds two forwards that are capable of such magic in a single moment to be the match-winner with just one killer pass, a la Pablo Hernandez in recent years, or Emi Buendia under Farke at Norwich.