Leeds United have endured some truly torrid transfer missteps in recent memory, with their financial issues from the early 2000s rivalling some of the blunders made under their newer regimes.
It seems everyone at the club is afraid to learn from the past failures of the historic institution, which has spent just three short seasons in the Premier League ever since their 2004 relegation, nearly 20 years ago now.
The aim of this campaign, and what Daniel Farke will hope to bring back to Elland Road, is top-flight football, and his summer of spending has certainly taken huge strides towards achieving that goal, even if it was one marred by a mass exodus.
No less than 15 of their stars departed, due to the arrogant inclusion of various relegation clauses by the previous ownership, and so for their new German manager it turned into a firefighting exercise as he rushed to plug gaps and replace stars.
With nine acquisitions of his own, he can hardly be faulted, especially considering some of those departures will likely be welcome ones given the lack of impact they had, and how they contributed to yet another relegation.
One such example is Brenden Aaronson, whose exit would likely have been well-received after the torrid first year he endured in English football.
Who is Leeds United’s worst-ever signing?
Whilst there are numerous candidates for the worst signing in Leeds’ rich history, there is certainly a case to be made for the USA international, who joined for a mouth-watering £24.7m fee in the summer of 2022.
With Jesse Marsch having narrowly helped his side escape the drop, Andrea Radrizzani sought to back his new coach wholeheartedly by sanctioning key additions, which his creative compatriot spearheaded.
However, it was a move that quickly turned sour, despite the 22-year-old having scored in their shock 3-0 demolition of Chelsea just three games into the new season. With his high press stealing the ball off the goalkeeper, he tapped into an empty net and offered a glimpse of the all-action football that the former RB Salzburg boss might bring.
That would be his sole goal throughout the entire league campaign where he featured 36 times, and Marsch would be sacked in February.
Pundit Jon Newsome even sought to outline one particularly terrible showing from the 5 foot 10 dud, speaking to BBC Radio Leeds: “I feel he’s very lightweight. There were a couple of occasions when the ball was there to be won and he actually jumped out of the way. That, for me, is really disappointing.”
Although it is a tough task to be named the worst-ever signing in Leeds’ history, when players like Jean-Kevin Augustin drained the club having barely played, and Seth Johnson joined for big money only to be ravaged by injuries, Aaronson certainly deserves a mention given he was signed for a huge fee, has disappointed throughout his 58 weeks at the club, and jumped ship at the first opportunity.
What is Brenden Aaronson’s salary at Leeds United?
Not only did the previous regime spend big on his initial transfer fee, but they also handed the midfielder a lucrative contract too, tying him down for five years. Given how poor he has been, this already seems like a torrid decision set to financially drain the club for the foreseeable future.
His £45k-per-week deal will see him amass an added £2.3m for every year he spends in Leeds, with his loan deal to Union Berlin offering some brief respite as the German club are reportedly paying his full wages whilst he helps them shine in the Champions League and push for another fine run in the Bundesliga.
It is seldom that players can fail upwards with such magnitude, having left a relegated side to soon face Real Madrid and Napoli in Europe’s elite competition.
It remains to be seen whether he will return to Elland Road raring to reignite his career at the club, or seek a permanent move elsewhere. At least, for now, his fiscal burden has been momentarily thwarted.
How much has Brenden Aaronson earned at Leeds?
Given he only spent one year with the club before being one of the first to leave at the start of the summer, the potential money he could have taken has been slightly limited.
That being said, it still marks one of the biggest outlays in the club’s history, especially when combining his transfer fee with those aforementioned wages garnered.
In total, Aaronson has snagged Leeds for the best part of £27m, and should he return next summer and refuse to move, that is a figure that could only keep growing.
The hope will be that he can start to pay that frustrating fee back in the coming years with some fine performances, or leave before he does irreparable financial damage to a side that could still be languishing in the Championship next year.
How much has Brenden Aaronson earned in his career?
Given his youth, there has hardly been ample time for the American to gain a significant purse compared to some of the amounts being thrown around lately in the modern game.
Saudi Arabian emergence has distorted what constitutes a normal wage for a player at this level, given they are now reportedly paying N’Golo Kante £86.2m a year, Sadio Mane a further £34m a year, and even former Celtic star Jota £10m a year.
This makes the alleged £7.6m that Aaronson has earned throughout his entire career seem like a tiny sum, with most of that time being spent in his homeland and Austria, hardly the most lucrative leagues.
Whilst at Philadelphia Union, the American bagged a nominal £1k-per-week salary, and upon moving to RB Salzburg, that increased significantly to £25k-per-week, via Capology..
Now at Leeds, his stuttering form suggests that he perhaps might struggle to continue that upward financial trajectory.
How much do other Leeds United players earn?
For all his weaknesses in the grand scheme of things, his exit, among numerous others, was a much-needed one given they would have been drowning in various lucrative wages following their relegation.
Their highest-earner last season was Rodrigo, who sat on a monstrous £100k-per-week deal, whilst Jack Harrison was close behind on £90k-per-week. It is indicative of their upheaval that neither of these stars are at the club anymore either.
In fact, Aaronson’s £45k-per-week wage actually marked only the 11th-highest within the squad last season, which may surprise many given the weight of his transfer fee, via Capology.
Nowadays, the highest earners sit at just £70k-per-week, with that aforementioned mass exodus culling the large majority of those lucrative contracts to ease the fiscal pressure they could have been feeling.
