‘Farke is adamant’… Phil Hay says Leeds will want to make a new signing if £5m man leaves this month
As we approach the midway point of the January transfer window, Leeds United has not yet made their first acquisition.
In his news conference before Leeds’ 3-0 victory over Cardiff City over the weekend, Daniel Farke acknowledged that some positions needed to be addressed, but progress has been sluggish thus far.
Leeds is willing to bide their time to land their top targets, but with Charlie Cresswell’s future still up in the air, one position that Leeds is still unsure about is center-back.
Cresswell will not be chosen for the foreseeable future, according to Farke’s statement from last week, unless he changes his attitude. Those remarks in addition to his limited playing time might cause him to head for the exit.A £5 million asking price has been set, and he is receiving a lot of interest.
And because Farke typically prefers to have four players in his squad, Phil Hay, an Athletic journalist, reckons Leeds could sign another center-back if Cresswell departs in an interview with the most recent episode of the Square Ball Podcast.
Leeds could sign a CB if Cresswell leaves
He said: “The thing that Farke was taking the most issue with wasn’t his timing, and turning up when he should turn up, like was an issue with Djed Spence. He basically said when we’re travelling away from home around about games, I see in his body language a quite deflated character.
“Somebody who isn’t focused, is frustrated and does he really want to be here and involved. Farke’s view on that at the moment is he doesn’t. This isn’t going to resolve itself and there has to be a decision one way or another.
“Farke is adamant on having four centre backs in the squad, so if he does move on, that leaves room for another one.”
The issue Leeds may have when trying to fill the center-back position is that prospective players might be turned off by Cresswell’s limited playing time and the solid Joe Rodon and Pascal Struijk partnership.

Even in the unlikely event that Cresswell leaves, Leeds shouldn’t panic since Ethan Ampadu has shown he can step in when necessary. Full-back positions and a number 10 are all likely of higher importance.
Rodon and Ampadu have started together in the past two games, and they look fantastic. Furthermore, it has given Ilia Gruev the opportunity to play a number of midfield games, where he has excelled.
Leeds’ strategy for handling this in the last two weeks of the window should be intriguing to observe.Among those who have been connected is Chris Mepham from Bournemouth.