Georginio Rutter’s exit at Leeds United was out of the blue, and fans were hurt, but they weren’t the only ones. The Leeds squad was also disappointed to find out that Rutter had left for Brighton.
Daniel Farke said the reason for a 3-0 Carabao Cup loss to Middlesbrough in August 2024 was Rutter’s departure. It had not been made public at that stage, but Rutter had said his goodbyes to the squad.
It was Rutter’s last outing for Leeds, before completing a £40m move to Brighton that summer. His exit came after Leeds fans had already watched the club sell duo Archie Gray and Crysencio Summerville.
Since then, Rutter has had a hand in 15 goals for Brighton in 40 games, while Leeds have made their way back to the Premier League. On Saturday, Rutter faces Leeds for the first time since his Brighton exit.
Joe Rodon and Georginio Rutter celebrate.
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What Joe Rodon said about Georginio Rutter’s exit in 2024
Following the 3-0 loss to Boro, Leeds went to West Brom and drew 0-0. An important result, after Leeds had conceded five goals in their first two games last season, and after, Rodon spoke about Rutter’s exit.
The Wales defender spoke for the rest of the Leeds squad during an interview with Sky Sports, claiming that “everyone knows” how important Rodon was to the side, but didn’t want to dwell on Rutter’s exit.
“Everyone knows how important he was to us, but, like I said, we can’t look at that now. We can only control what’s with us and what we can do is stick together and play together,” Rodon said, on Rutter.
Joe Rodon, Ethan Ampadu and Georginio Rutter in action for Leeds.
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Where Rutter sits in the list of all-time Leeds United departures
Despite his massive transfer fee, and that Leeds made a profit of around £5m on his purchase from German side Hoffenheim, Rutter is still some way off Leeds’ record sale in Barcelona superstar Raphinha.
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Kalvin Phillips is the club’s second-biggest sale, joining Man City for an initial £42m plus £3m more in add-ons. The £45m deal is still £10m less than Raphinha’s move to Barcelona, both back in 2022.
Then, Rutter and Gray are both in joint-third and Rio Ferdinand is in fifth. But, Crysencio Summerville’s move to West Ham will go higher than Ferdinand if the £9m in add-ons is met while with The Hammers.
Now, Rodon will have the job of keeping Rutter and Danny Welbeck at bay as Leeds look to go to The Amex and avoid defeat. A tricky task, given Leeds have a dismal record against Brighton over the years.