Charlie Cresswell is thriving over in France with Ligue 1 club Toulouse, and is justifying his eagerness to get more playing time than was on offer at Leeds United.
So far in the Premier League, the defence has been the least of Daniel Farke’s worries. It’s a testament not only to how he’s adapted, but the personnel he’s got at his disposal.
Joe Rodon and Pascal Struijk have taken to the task very well in the first nine games, recently supplemented by new signing Jaka Bijol. It underlines the competition for places that has been ever-present during Farke’s time at the club.
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Charlie Cresswell thriving at Toulouse after opting to leave Leeds United in 2024
Due to Leeds having such strong options at centre-back during their time in the Championship, Charlie Cresswell was forced to pursue other options.
Struijk and Rodon were arguably the best centre-back pairing at Championship level for two years straight, while Ethan Ampadu proved more than good enough as backup.
Charlie Cresswell is shining at Toulouse after leaving Leeds United in 2024. (REUTERS/Manon Cruz)
Cresswell kicked up a fuss in January 2024 as he sought more game time to build on his Millwall loan. But, he had to wait until the following summer to find opportunities. He joined Ligue 1 side Toulouse for a reported £3.8million fee.
Since then, the England U21 regular has been brilliant. His 7.13 WhoScored.com rating this season is one of the best in the French top flight, continuing to show his aerial prowess with two goals.
Charlie Cresswell aims not-so-subtle dig at Leeds United and Daniel Farke
He’s no doubt justified himself in terms of warranting more playing time than he was ever going to get at Elland Road.
Speaking this week to Footballogue, Cresswell stressed how much he’s benefitted from playing in Ligue 1 every week. He noted how coaches in France “trust” young players, while those in England saw him as a “kid”.
“For young foreign players, I think it’s a great time to come to France and play in Ligue 1!
“Here, many clubs trust young players. Coaches have no problem playing younger players. No problem at all. Whereas in England, it’s harder to break into the first team because they really see you as a ‘kid’ at 18, 19, or 20 years old. Even here, at the Toulouse academy, the youngsters are all brilliant.
“In France, if they think a player is good enough, he’ll play. He’ll be given opportunities and full confidence. As a result, the player feels incredibly good, which can only be beneficial for himself, but also for the club.”
Leeds United probably won’t regret selling Charlie Cresswell, but the fee looks very low now
During our promotion bids in the Championship, the fact of the matter was that Farke had no way of getting Cresswell into the side regularly.
He wasn’t displacing either or Rodon or Struijk, and Ampadu was impeccable during his time filling in.
A move away was best for all parties. Not only helping our PSR standing, but it also gave him his chance to prove his talent somewhere else.
Thankfully, he’s showing that now with Toulouse. But, it wasn’t exactly Farke’s fault we had two better centre-backs in front of him.
The only issue I can take with this is that we didn’t get a fee that represented Cresswell’s potential to develop into the player he is now.
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