Leeds United will be sweating on the futures of vital players after failure to gain promotion at the first time of asking, with Crysencio Summerville perhaps the key man that will almost certainly have plenty of summer interest.
Leeds will be bracing themselves for a somewhat difficult transfer window for plenty of young stars who took them to the cusp of promotion. Perhaps the most valuable player among Farke’s ranks is Summerville, who was named as the Championship Player of the Year, and has been subject to interest from several Premier League teams.
Whether he was scoring goals himself or laying them on a plate for others, the £1.3 million signing from Feyenoord was one of the most-feared attacking players in the division. Summerville scored 21 goals and provided 10 assists, and such form from a 22-year-old wide player is never going to go unnoticed from top-flight clubs.
As revealed by journalist Ben Jacobs via Give Me Sport, Liverpool will be able to sign the ace for a lesser fee as a result of the Whites’ play-off final defeat. Meanwhile, according to The Mirror, Crystal Palace will make a move for Summerville if they lose either one of Eberechi Eze or Michael Olise this summer.
Aston Villa have also been credited with an interest in the Dutchman and they join Chelsea in the running. Whilst Newcastle United have held discussions regarding Summerville recently, per The Athletic. Brighton & Hove Albion have most recently been linked by TEAMtalk.
Here, we have taken a look at two other players who are near-certainties to exit Leeds this summer for a fresh opportunity.
Jack Harrison
Everton believe they can capture Jack Harrison from Leeds in another loan move this summer, according to the latest update on his Elland Road future from The Mirror. The Toffees managed to take advantage of a clause in Harrison’s Leeds United contract to secure a season-long loan deal for the winger last summer – and they benefitted from having him at their disposal.
Harrison has four years left on his deal with Leeds until the summer of 2028, but Everton have been boosted by fresh reports surrounding the 27-year-old. It looked as though his future with the club would be all but over in West Yorkshire after Everton completed the signing of the winger.
One of the big headaches for the club this summer will be maximising fees for unwanted players who remain contracted to Leeds, but they will not receive a fee for Harrison this summer, who will instead be able to head out on loan once more, with that clause remaining active.
Harrison enjoyed three successive loans to Elland Road from Manchester City, the third of which contained an option-to-buy clause, which Leeds activated in 2021. He then went on to make 206 appearances for Leeds in his five-year stint, scoring 34 goals and registering a further 32 assists.
Harrison has four years left on his deal with Leeds until the summer of 2028, and although he has had mixed form this season, he is one of the club’s most salable assets in terms of what it can do regarding rules and regulations for Profit and Sustainability and Financial Fair Play.
His future now lies elsewhere and he could have potentially been key to freeing up funds to keep another key player, but will be heading on loan again, be that to Everton or elsewhere.
Marc Roca
Navigating loan clauses should be an easier situation this summer than in 2023, but the other player that the Whites seemingly will not make money on this summer is Marc Roca. Other departures are guaranteed, but recent reports state that he, like Harrison, can depart Leeds temporarily once again.
There may have been plenty of excitement when the 27-year-old was brought in from Bayern Munich during the previous summer, as he was seen as someone who could help offset the loss of Kalvin Phillips to Manchester City, but a loan clause in his contract allowed Roca to depart after just one year in West Yorkshire.
Roca made 32 league appearances for the Whites as they were relegated, impressing early on in the season in his partnership with Tyler Adams, but fading when the USMNT captain suffered an injury in February of last year.
He has largely impressed back in Spain with Real Betis, which should have made selling him easier for Leeds, if not to Betis, then to one of Spanish football’s top-flight sides. Leeds are well stocked in midfield and could have easily allowed for Roca to leave the club, granting them with a little extra wiggle room in terms of PSR money.
Not only that, but according to Spanish outlet Estadio Deportivo, Betis are now hopeful of extending his stay with the side beyond this season. The midfielder is then able to sign a second season-long loan agreement with Betis to leave the Whites without any fee yet again. Betis were said to be desperate for the Whites to miss out on promotion.
The latest now comes from Diario de Sevilla, who report that Betis intend to bring the midfielder back but only on loan with a new purchase option then tied into it, due to the Spanish side being keen to spend their limited funds elsewhere rather than a good portion on the Leeds man.
