Leeds United will be playing Premier League football next season. Daniel Farke, his staff, and the players all celebrated after the full-time whistle of Burnley’s win over Sheffield United.
Sky Sports were on hand to capture the celebrations and took a moment to have a word with the German manager, who was not too interested in looking ahead to the future.
Farke said “don’t scare me with the Premier League” to the reporter, partly in jest, but that is now the big problem that the club have to solve in the upcoming summer transfer window.
The West Yorkshire outfit will be tasked with building a team and a squad that is capable of stepping up to the Premier League without coming straight back down.
This means that Farke and his staff will have to make some incredibly ruthless decisions on players and their futures at Elland Road, as some may not be cut out to make the step up, and one player who could be on the chopping block is Patrick Bamford.
Why Patrick Bamford could leave Leeds this summer
The former England international is still contracted to the club through to the summer of 2026, which means that it is far from a certainty that he will be on his way out ahead of next season.
Bamford has made a return to the team in recent weeks, coming off the bench in the last five matches, but there has been little evidence to suggest that he would be good enough to be an option in the Premier League.
Since the start of last season, the English striker has scored eight goals from 11.63 xG in 48 Championship matches, including zero goals from 2.11 xG in 15 games in the division this term.
There is not much hope of Bamford being an effective player in the Premier League for Leeds next season if he cannot make the most of his chances in the second tier, underperforming his xG by almost four goals.
24/25
16
0
23/24
35
8
22/23
31
6
21/22
10
2
20/21
38
17
As you can see in the table above, he has failed to kick on since his return of 17 goals in the Premier League under Marcelo Bielsa in the 2020/21 campaign, failing to hit double figures in all competitions in any of the following four seasons.
These statistics suggest that the left-footed dud should be moved on by Leeds in the upcoming summer transfer window, in order to make room for a player who could make the step up.
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Bamford was linked with a move to Wrexham during the January transfer window and this suggests that there could be a level of interest in his services heading into the next window, which Leeds could now capitalise on.
This also means that he may not be one of the first players out of the door, though, because his contract is not expiring and it may take time for a deal to be finalised for him to move on from Elland Road, particularly as the top earner on £70k-per-week – as per Capology.
Instead, one of the first players who should be axed by the Whites this summer, ahead of a Premier League season next term, is versatile defender Sam Byram, who is out of contract this year.
Why Leeds should release Sam Byram
The 31-year-old defender’s deal runs out at the end of June and this means that Leeds have an instant decision to make on his future in the coming weeks.
Farke loves the English full-back, as evidenced by the reported claim that he had to convince the club to sign him on a free transfer in 2023 despite reluctance from above him, but the manager must be ruthless with his decisions to build a team capable of competing in the Premier League.
The German boss, who also signed him during his time in charge of Norwich City in 2019, must axe Byram from the squad and attempt to recruit competition for Jayden Bogle in the right-back position.
His availability is a slight concern because the defender has not played more than 18 matches in all competitions in six of the last eight seasons, but he has played 73 times for Leeds in the last two campaigns combined.
Signing him to a new deal would require a show of faith that his fitness issues are fully behind him and that he is able to cope with the intensity and the rigours of the Premier League week-in-week-out.
Appearances
34
Starts
15
Key passes per game
0.2
Assists
1
Tackles + interceptions per game
1.5
Duel success rate
55%
As you can see in the table above, Byram has been a solid, but unspectacular, performer in the Championship for the Whites in the current campaign.
But it remains to be seen how useful the defender would be in the Premier League if his current role is only to be a back-up option in the second tier. His lack of outstanding displays at that level suggests that he would not handle the step up to the top division.
This is why Leeds must be ruthless by axing the £20k-per-week ace from the squad, particularly with his contract situation providing the club with an opportunity to move him on without having to find a buyer.
The Whites need to build a squad that can survive in the Premier League and that is why they should brutally part ways with the out-of-contract defender to make room for another player to come in and take his place in the squad in the summer transfer window.
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This could make Byram the first player to be moved on ahead of promotion to the Premier League this summer, with Bamford possibly following him out of the door later in the window.