According to the latest reports from the Mirror, Leeds United have decided to end their pursuit for Irish winger Callum O’Dowda. The Whites were linked with him with a move in January, but nothing materialised then. A few weeks back, reports emerged that Leeds will look to revisit their January target in the summer, but now it seems like the club has cooled off their interest in the Bristol City winger.
Why Leeds United need a left winger?
The Whites desperately need to add wingers to their roster, and we expect them to sign atleast two in the summer to bolster their chances for promotion in the upcoming season. The Whites came perilously close to landing Daniel James in January, but the move fell through in the last moments.
Now after an impressive season, the winger has gone on to join Leeds United’s arch-rivals Manchester United. Ezgjan Alioski who played down the wings seems more suited as a fullback, and there are no outright left wingers present in Leeds United’s squad currently.
O’Dowda has entered the final year of his contract, and he is yet to commit to a new deal with Bristol City. It is surprising to see the Whites pulling out of the race when they desperately need left sided wingers.
The club lost the services of Jack Harrison as well whose loan spell expired. Leeds United are again interested in signing him, but Manchester City have put a price tag of £20m on him. The club is also getting linked with Brandon Barker from Manchester City as well. We feel that O’Dowda will be a better option than both of them.
Are United making a mistake by not pursuing O’Dowda?
The 24-year-old made 35 appearances for the Robins last season and contributed with five assists and five goals. O’Dowda has impressive pace and acceleration, and he is also known as a hard worker off the ball. Bielsa often demands his players to press high up the pitch, and the Irishman would have fitted in well in Leeds United’s system.
O’Dowda isn’t an exceptional option though, as he has a bit of trouble finding the right ball in the final third. That is the kind of problem which even Leeds United suffered from last season. Nevertheless, the names with which the club is getting linked with right now and the fact that the club doesn’t have any good wingers at the moment, suggests to us that they should have gone for O’Dowda. Hopefully, the club has some better option in mind if they are pulling out from the race.
