Forer Scotland international Alan Hutton has suggested that Barry Douglas could force a move away from Leeds United in the next transfer window to jump start his career after two testing seasons.
Having won the Championship title in 2017/18 with Wolves, Barry Douglas arrived at Elland Road under Marcelo Bielsa as one of the standout performers of the season just gone and there were high expectations that he could hit the ground running once again.
A well-taken assist in his first game along with a number of other stellar performances at the start of his Leeds career boded well before injuries scuppered all of his momentum, to which he hasn’t properly recovered.
The one position that hasn’t been settled since Bielsa arrived in West Yorkshire has been left-back with Gjanni Alioski also failing to nail down a starting berth, but it does seem like Stuart Dallas has made the position his own this season.
With the Premier League seemingly on the horizon for the Whites, it looks like the writing’s on the wall for Douglas, seeing him potentially move on after two years with the club.
Speaking to Football Insider, former Scottish international full-back Alan Hutton believes Douglas’ days at Elland Road might be numbered and that a move away would be best for his career at this stage. He stated: “He went to Leeds with a big expectation and it’s not worked for him. Yes, he’s had a few injuries and stuff but he’s possibly third choice now.
“I always thought he would come on and would have a chance to play for Scotland – unfortunately, he had two world-class players ahead of him in Robertson and Tierney.
“He’s 30? I’m surprised at that. He’s at an age where you should be playing every week. You’re at a time where you should be at your peak and he’ll be the exact same. His next move is one where I think he needs to know he’s playing for certain.
“If Leeds go up, he’s not playing at the moment, is he going to play in the Premier League? I wouldn’t have thought so, therefore it’s possibly time to move on and he’ll be trying to make that right decision for his playing career.”
There’s no telling where Douglas might end up after this season but it’s clear that he has fallen down the pecking order a lot this season, with Dallas the standout candidate to take the reins in the long-term.