, Big reasons why Leeds United won’t loan Everton starlet Holgate

Big reasons why Leeds United won’t loan Everton starlet Holgate

There’s a few things surprising about Leeds United, surprising to both their supporters and also to those in the wider football arena.

Chief amongst those is likely the turnaround that new manager Marcelo Bielsa has achieved with last season’s disappointing squad. Leeds finished in 13th place last season, a sparkling start dullened by an embarrassing slide into mediocrity.

Bielsa’s appointment has turned all of that around. Forget the adage of ‘a new broom sweeps cleanest’, Bielsa and his philosophy has been a massive upgrade over a broom.

What the Argentinian coaching legend has done is akin to shoehorning a Ferrari engine into the bay of a Ford Mondeo. Looks the same on the outside, but by Christ does it move differently when the gas is applied.

The thing is, this has been achieved by Bielsa’s insistence on two things: a trimmed down squad, pared back to its barest of necessities and also an insistence that players be able to fulfil at least two roles. That’s the Bielsa Way as such.

It’s also a double-edged sword when it comes to dealings with new players in any transfer window. Why? Well in the following ways!

Leeds United have been linked with Everton defender Mason Holgate, a youngster of some pedigree. The 22-year-old joined the Toffees from Barnsley in mid-August 2015, and has progressed to becoming a six-cap England Under-21 international.

He’s also made the breakthrough to the Everton first team set-up, his five games in the Premier League this season going alongside his 38 Premier League appearances.

All of this leads to questions being asked from Leeds United fans, fans desperate for some like-for-like cover at centre-back. These questions are still forthcoming, such as the following retweeted by Sun reporter Alan Nixon:

Leeds Holgate

The question is posed, and answered. Yet, even the answer adds another layer to the possibility of someone like Mason Holgate signing for Leeds United during the January transfer window, a window that is just days away.

Opinion – Holgate or closed gate?

Quite simply put, I don’t see Mason Holgate coming to Leeds during the upcoming January window. There’s many reasons that I see as influencing this, the following are but a few.

First, there’s the incredible loyalty that Bielsa shows to his players. He’s let players leave the club, on loan or on permanent delays, as he couldn’t guarantee them the game time that they deserve. What he was left with was the core of his dual-position players, players that he’s stuck by.

Bringing in someone like Mason Holgate would upset the apple cart somewhat, would be an almost acceptance that his philosophy doesn’t work, well to a degree. It would be like Bielsa saying ‘Look, having Kalvin Phillips slot in to the back line isn’t working’ or ‘I don’t trust Aapo Halme to give us that cover.’

So there’s that. There is also the linked fact that Bielsa has said that any incoming players must improve on what is already at the club. That alone would be like saying that Holgate is better a centre-back than, say, Liam Cooper, who is currently recovering from a knee operation.

Then there’s the insistence that both Everton and Holgate would likely insist on regular game time. This would be that step across the Rubicon for Bielsa, kowtowing to the demands placed upon him by another club – almost unthinkable.

So, do Leeds United need a player the likes of what Mason Holgate is? Short answer, yes. Will they be getting Mason Holgate in January? Short answer, probably not.

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