There are marginal players at Leeds who require more playing time than they are currently receiving at Elland Road, and January will undoubtedly see a lot of interest from potential suitors.
Darko Gyabi, a £5 million addition from Manchester City who has not yet properly adapted to senior game despite his obvious skill, is one of those players.
Gyabi was a target for a loan to Plymouth Argyle in the Championship this month, according to a report this week from Plymouth Live.
It comes after the Pilgrims cruelly lost both of their standout loan midfield players, Luke Cundle and Finn Azaz, to recalls, only to be shipped back to their EFL rivals: Cundle is on loan to Stoke City, where he teams up with departing Plymouth manager Steven Schumacher, and Azaz is sent permanently to Middlesbrough from Aston Villa.
Gyabi has only made two appearances for Leeds this season: he started the EFL Cup match against Shrewsbury and came off the bench during the team’s late August away trip to Ipswich.
According to Football Insider, an agreement has been reached for Leeds’ youthful midfield player to spend the second half of the season in Devon.
According to reports, a loan arrangement has been reached. Gyabi is undoubtedly excited to start playing, and Ian Foster, the manager of the Pilgrims, will be happy to add more depth to his thin midfield.
If all goes according to plan, a deal might be done soon and confirmed today, which would mean Gyabi would be available for this weekend’s away match against Huddersfield Town.
While it’s usually difficult to loan players to other teams in the division in January, Gyabi to Plymouth makes financial sense for all parties.
He will play every week you could possibly conceive, which will accelerate his growth without bolstering a rival team for promotion.
Gyabi has the talent, but it will take a lot to duplicate the impact that Cundle and Azaz both had at Plymouth in a half-season.