Leeds United have a plethora of midfield options in the squad, and that is one area that doesn’t need any strengthening at the moment. However, they can always upgrade, and the Whites may want to bring in a player from the Championship, who is seen as a future Premier League star.
The arrival of Sean Longstaff and Anton Stach this summer has provided enough strength and depth in the middle of the park, and that is one area of the squad the club and the supporters are least worried about.
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Leeds are almost certain to be active in the winter window as their goal-scoring woes get exposed with each passing day, and they have been tipped to look for solutions in the Championship.
However, the Whites may want to look in the second tier of English football for a player who may play in the attacking midfield role as well, and Hayden Hackney could be the ideal solution, given his versatility.
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The 23-year-old midfielder could have easily left Middlesbrough in the summer. Ipswich had a bid of £20m accepted for Hackney, but a move did not come to fruition.
He is almost certain to leave Boro in the summer if they do not get promoted, and Lee Hendrie insisted that he is having another excellent season in the Championship.
The former Aston Villa star and Sky Sports pundit stressed that Hackney is one of the best midfielders in the Championship and has wasted little time to be a key player under new Boro manager Rob Edwards.
“Hayden Hackney’s been absolutely excellent for them this season”, Hendrie told Football League World.
“Already contributed a goal, started every game as well. He’s a player who’s got that bit of leadership, considering he’s still relatively young.
“He’s got that drive and obviously a new manager to go and impress, Rob Edwards, and he’s really done that, I think this season, so he’d be one of my three for sure.”
Hackney is not a typical midfielder
The 23-year-old learned a lot about playing in midfield under Michael Carrick, who coached him at Boro until last season.
However, he is not a typical midfielder, as his ability to play in multiple roles makes him such a delight for any manager. Hackney can play at the base of the midfield, a box-to-box operator or in attacking midfield.
He scored in the only game he played as an attacking midfielder against Millwall last month and registered an assist as a deep-lying playmaker.
Leeds have issues with creativity in midfield, and the addition of Hackney could give Farke another option who can create or score goals from the middle.
It would be difficult to wrestle him out of Boro in the winter window, but Leeds have him on their sights and must make a play for him sooner or later.
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