Leeds United look expected to bid farewell to right-back Cody Drameh in the summer, as the defender aims to secure better opportunities away from Elland Road.
Leeds’ investment in young players has been a real success story in the past three seasons, with a host of the first team coming from that method of transfer business.
Cody Drameh was one of the first through the door when Leeds clinched promotion, but he has struggled for game time despite the inconsistency of those in front of him – leading to two loan moves to the Championship in the last two January windows.
With this, the Yorkshire Evening Post are reporting that the club are expected to lose the defender as he aims to secure better playing opportunities in the 2023/24 campaign.
Here, we look at one winner and one loser at Leeds as they are set to lose Drameh…
Winner: Another chance for Kristensen?
Leeds shifting on a very talented right-back tells you one thing: that the club are confident that Rasmus Kristensen can still be the man going forward.
Luke Ayling penned a new deal to keep him at Leeds until the summer of 2024, meaning he is set to still be an option in the new season.
Meanwhile, Kristensen is 25 (26 in July), and has time on his side to find his feet in the Premier League.
Leeds letting a main competitor for the right-back position long-term is only good news for Kristensen, even if fans might not agree with the decision.
Will Leeds stay up?
Yes
No
Loser: Will Gelhardt face similar loan struggles?
This January also saw Joe Gelhardt shipped out to Sunderland for the remainder of the season, aiming to continue his development as opportunities at Leeds remain slender.
His lack of action for Leeds comes due to Georginio Rutter’s arrival, and that isn’t likely to be something that goes in Gelhardt’s favour going forward with the Frenchman only going to get better with time.
If Leeds find themselves in a position each season where Gelhardt can’t play much, then he’s going to be subject to more loans.
Such a development would surely have the striker assessing his options too.