According to Phil Hay, Daniel Farke’s “hard line” against Charlie Cresswell currently only suggests that the defender will be departing Leeds United.
The German stated that the 21-year-old’s focus wasn’t sufficient and he wouldn’t play until the lead-up to the team’s victory at Cardiff this past weekend [Phil Hay, January 11]. The Athletic journalist stated on the Square Ball Podcast on January 15 that there were “vibes” coming from Elland Road that indicated a move would be acceptable for both parties.
Due to his lack of engagement, the defender “definitely” wants to leave, and Hay thinks the team would let him to do so for the proper offer. The sticking point is that most exit alternatives will see him boost a rival.
Hay stated, “You had the Charlie Cresswell issue too, and Farke’s taken a hard line on that, and he does seem like a disciplinarian in these scenarios,” after seven minutes and ten seconds.However, I find it difficult to imagine a scenario in which Cresswell stays behind. It seems as though you have seen this dance before.
It seems obvious that Leeds would not want him to go to another club that was in the mix with them. “The difficulty is that the Championship is showing a huge amount of interest in him and you have to be strategic when it comes to letting players go elsewhere and thinking about what they might do that might compromise your own season.”
Disassembled
It was expected that this season would mark Cresswell‘s return to Elland Road as a first-team regular following his Championship loan with Millwall the previous year.
Rather, it seems to have resulted in a breach between him and his management, which could spell the end of his time at the team where many had him pegged as a future captain.
It is impossible to say from the outside and is likely to elicit a different response from either side as to whether the manager had been leaving the center-back out for that reason all along, or whether Farke had been routinely neglecting him for minutes that came first and caused his focus to waver.
However, as demonstrated by the fact that Djed Spence was sent back to Tottenham earlier this month due to another apparent disagreement behind closed doors and that he saw no room for sentimentality with Luke Ayling prior to his departure to Middlesbrough, the manager isn’t afraid to enforce the law even when it obviously narrows his options.
Because of this, Leeds United has already lost two defenders this month. Robin Koch is one of them; he signed a pre-contract to stay with loan team Borussia Monchengladbach. It is therefore unexpected that a fourth defender may be on the way.
All well and good if Farke produces results and other players seem to be playing for him, but if he has too many young players with high expectations who never live up to them, it may begin to look as though he is the issue.
The manager will be under even more pressure to prove himself right and complete the task of relegation back to the top flight if Cresswell leaves at this point, as it will eliminate Liam Cooper‘s anticipated succession plan just as the captain appears to be nearing the end of his Leeds United career.
In other Leeds United news, the club decided to spend £4 million after negotiations to buy a defender.
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