The transfer window may be over but the free agent market means Leeds United are still able to sign players, at least in theory.
Daniel Farke failed to get in the attackers he wanted in the closing days of the window and so that makes the task for survival all the more trickier. He and the recruitment team ideally wanted a right winger who could play as the number 10.
Facundo Buonanotte was actually the inverse, a number 10 who could play on the wing. His late U-turn for Chelsea meant Leeds were left annoyed and empty-handed, though the player is now reaping the effects of his decision having been left out of the Blues’ Champions League squad.
Harry Wilson fit the profile more aptly, given he is a right winger who can play behind the striker. Fulham ultimately pulled the plug as the minutes ticked towards deadline hour and the move fell through.
In the days after, online discourse honed in on the free agent market. Josh Brownhill was one name floated but the former Burnley midfielder is now off to Saudi Arabia. Others have pointed to Hakim Ziyech given the 32-year-old is a winger who has actually spent more time playing as the number 10.
On paper, such a move seems appealing but his age and likely high wage demands provide hurdles. Dominic Calvert-Lewin was a free agent but has been given a hefty wage.
It’s unlikely Leeds could afford to do that twice, in light of their insistence that PSR limits have been maxed out. And anyway, speaking to Leeds Live and other local media on Tuesday, managing director Robbie Evans laid out the club’s stance on free agents.
“I think whether it's in the window or it's the free agent market only or it is January, it's all about what does the team actually need,” he said.
“I don't think right now there is any need so great that it's worth going to the free market to fill it, in part because I doubt the right player is there.
“It's a great market for injuries. But beyond that, it's probably wait and see. And once we get through the first 10 games, your eight games from January. If we have to evaluate, we'll use that. But our goal is to avoid January, if possible.
“So there's a reason we didn't do a big thing in January last year or the year before. The goal is to be done early, and actually we got all of our core guys done before the season even began for that reason. Not just before deadline day, but actually before August was the goal, but the key ones.
"And so it's there, but we don't see using free agency as a priority because there's only a handful of players we felt were good enough to begin with.
"And the pool obviously shrinks dramatically when you go from the entirety of the window or the players in the window to the handful of free agents that are available.”
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