Leeds United will look to make it to the Premier League by next season after the heartbreak of last campaign. They are quite clearly bidding for the top two spots and for that, they will need to be consistent throughout the season. Last season, they suffered a dip in form after January, and they missed out on the direct promotion spots.
Phillips on which player can take Leeds to promotion
Former Sunderland and England striker Kevin Phillips believes that for Leeds United to avoid the fate of last season, they should look to bring in someone like Jarrod Bowen in January from Hull City. Speaking to Quest, he said, ”He’s a quality player, and there’s a lot of talk about him moving on. His movement is very good and his technical ability.”
”He’s a player who is going places. Dare I say it put him in the Leeds team in January and he might be the difference between them getting promoted or not.”
Bowen will undeniably be a top signing for Leeds United, and he will give them a boost in the attacking third. The Whites haven’t been clinical in front of goal so far, and the Hull City winger can make that difference to the side. Bowen was named in last season’s Championship team of the year, even though Hull City struggled to get going as a team.
Why is any move for Bowen unlikely to happen?
The English winger is again in fantastic form as he has already bagged nine goals and two assists in all competitions so far. However, it cannot be ignored that Leeds United will likely be priced out for a move to him. It is believed that Bowen will cost £20m and Hull City are unlikely to budge from their valuation. Premier League outfit Newcastle United have been linked extensively to him in the past few months and the Whites will definitely find it hard to lure him.
Maybe a six-month loan deal in January which can be turned into a permanent deal in the summer can do the trick for the Whites. However, they are walking a tightrope in terms of Financial Fair Play. They will already have to pay £15m for Helder Costa in the summer of 2020 to make his signing permanent. Therefore spending another £20m for another winger could be a bit too much for the Yorkshire outfit.
However, it cannot be denied that Bowen’s arrival would boost their promotion chances. Last season, they missed out on Daniel James in January under spectacular circumstances, and the Whites missed a player like him later on in the season. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be the case this time around.
