Daniel Farke will be keeping a close eye on the progress of the five players out on loan from Leeds United this season.
Unlike last summer where the number of players out on loan was well into double figures, Leeds were a little more selective in who they decided to allow leave temporarily this time around.
Jack Harrison, Rasmus Kristensen and Sonny Perkins are the three who almost certainly do not have futures at Elland Road regardless of how they perform this season.
Harrison and Kristensen have burnt too many bridges by leaving on loan for a second successive season, while Perkins is out of contract in 2025 and is struggling to break into Leyton Orient’s starting XI.
Darko Gyabi and Sam Greenwood are the two others on Leeds’ books plying their trades elsewhere, with the former at Plymouth Argyle, and the latter at Preston North End.
Leeds loanee Gyabi told he can become a ‘top player’
This season feels like the final chance for Gyabi and Greenwood to prove they have what it takes to forge a long-term career at Leeds.
Greenwood had an up and down time at Boro during the 2023/24 campaign and now working under Paul Heckingbottom at PNE, has been told he needs to improve his end product.
As for Gyabi, this is actually the second time he has joined Plymouth after injury cut short his half-season loan in March earlier this year.
Gyabi showed glimpses of what he could do in his first stint but is now set for a real consistent run in the side, which will do his development a world of good.
Speaking to the Plymouth Herald, Argyle assistant Pete Shuttleworth believes his ‘outstanding’ performance against Sunderland last week shows how he has the potential to be one of the Championship’s best players in the future.
He said: “The second half last Saturday was outstanding, that’s him and defines him as a player. That’s what we as coaches need to work with, to develop that to become the norm 90 minutes every week and he will become a top player in this league.
“We had good reports about what he was like as a player, and whether we could add him to the squad and use those qualities. He then had a little setback in pre-season and I think it just took him back off his sharpness a little bit.
“He started the season probably not quite there. He’s quite an explosive player, he gets across the ground and he goes and bites into tackles, and if you are not quite there sometimes that can be quite evident with those type of players.
“I think now we are seeing Darko getting back to those early pre-season levels. Second half on Saturday he was excellent and that’s where we need to build from.”
Gyabi more likely than Greenwood to succeed at Leeds
Although this is really the last chance for both Gyabi and Greenwood to prove to Leeds they have what it takes, it does feel unlikely for both.
Leeds have a wealth of midfield options currently in the squad and with Charlie Crew also pushing into the first team, they would be fifth and sixth choice at best coming back.
Having said that, Leeds spent £5 million on Gyabi for a reason and if one was to make, he is definitely the most likely.
Gyabi was highly thought of at Manchester City before joining Leeds, but he has just lost his way a bit since moving to Elland Road.
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