Leeds United will be bitterly disappointed if they’re not promoted this season.
The Whites are eight points clear of third place with 20 games of the campaign to go, so missing out on a top-two spot from this point would be an absolute disaster.
Of course, United would have no choice but to regroup and to go again next season, but the thought of another year in the Championship would bring a lot of uncertainty and worry.
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Firstly, there are question marks around Marcelo Bielsa’s future at the club if Leeds don’t go up. He stayed after their playoff disappointment last term, but Phil Hay has previously stated that he would go if the Yorkshire side are unsuccessful in their crusade this season.
There would also be questions about their squad as Ben White’s loan would be over and Kalvin Phillips is constantly being linked to the Premier League.
It may all sound like doom and gloom, but United have a saving grace.
They may be able to keep the majority of the squad together due to the number of contract renewals that they have already sorted this term. Stuart Dallas, Pablo Hernandez and Liam Cooper all signed new deals, and they’re also able to keep key loan players at the club due to their options to purchase them.
A recent report in The Athletic states that Jack Harrison would cost around £8m to sign permanently, and after Illan Meslier impressed on his debut, making four saves, it was reported that he could be signed for around half of the £10m that he was once valued at.
Add onto that the fact that the Yorkshire club have an obligation to buy Helder Costa at the end of the season, then the Whites will have a strong lineup with or without Bielsa as long as they trigger these options.
If Meslier can keep up the level he showed on his debut then a fee of around £5m would be a snip for his services, and with Harrison contributing to 11 goals already this term an £8m move for him would be a no-brainer.
In other news, the stars may be aligning for Leeds to sign one man.