Daniel Farke will be anxious to keep his Leeds United squad intact and possibly add one or two in January, but recent history suggests the prospects of doing so are slim.
After losing in the play-off final against Southampton at Wembley Stadium, Daniel Farke planned to retain his group together in the summer. However, Leeds were pushed into a mini-rebuild following the departures of four important players.
Crysencio Summerville, Archie Gray, and Georginio Rutter were sold for a combined fee of more than £100 million, while Glen Kamara joined Rennes. Kamara has been connected with clubs such as Southampton and Ipswich Town.
In January, there will always be interest in some of Farke’s important players, and left-back Junior Firpo is likely to be one of them. The star has just entered the final six months of his contract.
Marc Roca and Diego Llorente’s reunion with Leeds star in the works
Clubs can now approach Firpo on a pre-contract basis, which would result in him signing for a new club now and joining them in June. Graeme Bailey told LeedsUnited.News that Firpo may only sign a new contract if Leeds improves.
Despite the promotion, Firpo may decide not to sign a new contract. TeamTalk currently reports that his future is still ‘unsolved’ as we enter January, with Real Betis ‘leading the race’ to sign Firpo.
It’s possible that Marc Roca and Diego Llorente’s La Liga team, which is in the Europa Conference League and now sits ninth in Spain’s top tier, will strike a deal for Firpo now and sign him in the summer.
Junior Firpo will certainly be tempted by a move to Real Betis.
Real Betis recruited Firpo from Spanish club Malagueno just before he turned 18. He went on to play 43 games for Betis after 45 appearances for their second string, scoring 12 goals.
That form prompted him to join Barcelona, and after a brief stint at the Nou Camp, Firpo went to Leeds in the summer of 2021. Given that he spent five years on the books at Betis, he may believe he has unfinished business.
Only 43 senior games in five years with Betis isn’t much in the grand scheme of things, and if Manuel Pellegrini’s side comes calling for Firpo, it’s easy to imagine him returning to Betis.
Firpo has been connected to more than only the Spanish club. Besiktas, a Turkish club, is also interested in Firpo as a replacement for the heavily criticised former West Ham defender Arthur Masuaku.
