Leeds United won the Championship title with a whopping 100-point haul in the 2024/25 campaign to earn promotion back up to the Premier League.
Daniel Farke will now be aiming to guide the team clear of relegation, knowing that the last six teams promoted from the second tier have all been relegated at the first time of asking.
leeds-farke
The Whites scored 95 goals in their 46 matches in the Championship, and they did so without a natural number ten type magician in the squad, as they had in the past with Pablo Hernandez, and as Farke had in the past with Emiliano Buendia.
Instead, old-school wingers like Manor Solomon and Dan James provided quality in the final third, whilst Brenden Aaronson was the main number ten and ended the season with just two assists in 43 league starts.
|Form against the Championship top six|
|Brenden Aaronson vs|Goals|Assists|
|---|
|Bristol City (A)|0|0|
|Burnley (H)|0|0|
|Sunderland (A)|0|0|
|Sheffield United (H)|0|0|
|Coventry (H)|0|0|
|Coventry (A)|0|0|
|Burnley (A)|0|0|
|Sunderland (H)|0|0|
|Sheffield United (A)|0|0|
|Bristol City (H)|0|0|
|Stats via Sofascore|
As you can see in the table above, the USA international did not deliver a single goal contribution in his ten appearances against the other teams in the top six, as he struggled badly against the better teams in the division.
Why Leeds needs to sign their next Pablo Hernandez
Aaronson's lacklustre form in front of goal, despite being a regular starter in a dominant team, suggests that he will not be good enough to make the step up to the Premier League next season.
That thought is, of course, backed up by the fact that he only managed one goal in 36 games in the top-flight during his first year in England in the 2022/23 campaign, which shows that he has already failed to make the step up to that level.
brenden-aaronson-leeds
Therefore, Leeds need to acquire a new number ten option to score and create goals in the Premier League, and they should target a traditional playmaker in the Pablo Hernandez mould to improve their options in the middle of the park.
The Spaniard delivered 36 goals and 41 assists in 175 appearances for the West Yorkshire outfit in all competitions, which shows that he provided quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals on a regular basis whilst playing on the wing or as an attacking midfielder.
Hernandez was a joy to watch during his time at Elland Road, as shown by some of the fantastic goals in the clips above, and Leeds do not have a similar kind of player in their current squad.
That is why the Whites should make signing their next version of the Spanish maestro a priority between now and the end of the summer transfer window ahead of their return to the Premier League.
Leeds have interest in Championship playmaker
According to the Yorkshire Evening Post, Leeds United are 'believed' to have a genuine interest in Sheffield United attacking midfielder Gustavo Hamer this summer.
The report claims that the Championship champions are one of the teams eyeing up the Dutch playmaker, although it reveals that he has fallen down the shortlist and is not the number one priority at this moment in time.
It adds that the Whites were interested in a deal to sign the Blades star in the summer transfer window in 2024, and that they had an offer of £13m turned down by their rivals.
Given that he is not at the top of their wishlist for number tens, it remains to be seen if Leeds will snap the 28-year-old star up before the window slams shut at the start of September.
gustavo-hamer-leeds
He is reportedly valued at a fee of around £18m by Sheffield United, but this latest report by the Yorkshire Evening Post does not reveal if they would be willing to pay that much for the midfielder.
Why Leeds should sign Gustavo Hamer
The Whites should press ahead with a swoop for the Championship star, despite him not being one of their top targets in that position, because he could be their next Pablo Hernandez.
Sheffield United's Gustavo Hamer celebrates scoring their first goal
Like the Spaniard, Hamer is a diminutive playmaker who can play out wide or in the middle as a number ten, having played off the left 33 times for Sheffield United this season.
The Dutch star, who was hailed as "outstanding" by former boss Chris Wilder, has showcased his quality in the Premier League and in the Championship with the Blades in the last two campaigns.
In the 2024/25 campaign, the former Coventry City magician scored nine goals, created 11 'big chances', and delivered seven assists in the Championship, which shows that he provided quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals.
Hamer's performances for Sheffield United in the Premier League in the previous season, despite their relegation from the division, suggest that the potential is there for him to be a great addition for the Whites.
23/24 Premier League Gustavo Hamer Percentile rank vs midfielders
Goals 4 Top 16%
xG 2.98 Top 24%
xA 4.55 Top 12%
Assists 6 Top 10%
Chances created 70 Top 3%
Crosses completed 33 Top 5%
Dribbles completed 28 Top 13%
Stats via FotMob
As you can see in the table above, the Dutchman ranked highly among his positional peers as both a scorer and a creator of goals from a midfield position, as he was directly involved in ten goals in the top-flight.
This shows that he does have the ability to make an impact in front of goal in the Premier League. Whereas, as aforementioned, Aaronson flopped in his last season at that level.
gus-hamer-sheffield-united
Therefore, Hamer could arrive at Elland Road this summer as a long-term successor to Pablo Hernandez in West Yorkshire, as he is a natural playmaker who has shown that he can make a difference in the final third with goals and assists at an impressive rate.
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It is now down to the club to decide who their number one target is for the number ten position, but these statistics suggest that the Blades star would be an excellent choice.