Leeds United manager Daniel Farke wants to add to his squad in January and bring in more options for the second half of the season. However, Sebastiaan Bornauw’s situation could ultimately result in the German coach losing a player from his team in the winter transfer window.
Bornauw is one of the two centre-backs Leeds signed in the summer as they prepare for life back in the Premier League. He suffered an injury in pre-season, which really set him back before the start of the new campaign.
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He played in the EFL Cup defeat at Sheffield Wednesday, but the centre-back has not played a single minute of Premier League football and is even struggling to make the matchday squads.
Jaka Bijol made his Premier League debut in the 2-1 win over West Ham last weekend, but it seems his fellow summer signing is some way away from playing in the top flight at the moment.
The Leeds United defender is having a ‘nightmare’ at Elland Road
The 26-year-old Belgian defender joined Leeds United from VfL Wolfsburg for a reported £5.1m in July.
He spent four years at Wolfsburg, but injuries complicated his time in Germany, and he ended up making just 96 appearances for the club.
Bornauw was looking forward to rekindling his career in the Premier League with Leeds and getting over his injury nightmare at his previous club.
However, his English adventure is turning out to be another nightmare. He has not done enough behind the scenes for Farke to consider playing him in the Premier League.
According to RTBF, the defender can do little at the moment to change the situation, as he is clearly the fourth-choice centre-back in a squad that has four senior centre-backs.
Joe Rodon, Pascal Struijk, and Bijol are clearly ahead of him, and for the moment, it doesn’t seem like Bornauw will be making his Premier League debut any time soon.
A January transfer exit is likely
Bornauw’s situation at Leeds is difficult. He is a backup centre-back for a manager who rarely changes his centre-back pairing, barring injuries or suspensions.
Bijol only made his debut against West Ham because of Struijk’s poor form, and even then, it took Farke a couple of weeks to finally usher in the change.
With no cup games scheduled until January, it seems hard to suggest that Bornauw will get his second Leeds appearance anytime soon.
The centre-back wants to play football, and it is unlikely that he will be getting on the pitch much unless something drastic happens at the back for Leeds.
With the January window looming, the Belgian may want to leave Elland Road in the winter window to seek more minutes in the second half of the season.
He didn’t arrive at Leeds to just warm the bench this season, and there is a chance that if he doesn’t see his situation changing, the centre-back will seek the exit door in January.
However, it is unlikely that Farke will sanction a departure unless a replacement is secured, as he is not interested in weakening his squad for the second half of the season.
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