Leeds United’s full-back ranks could be significantly thinner come the end of the January transfer window. With less than a week gone, Djed Spence has already made an early return to Tottenham Hotspur after the decision was made to bring his season-long loan to an early end (BBC Sport).
And there could be another exit too as fellow Championship side Middlesbrough eye up a move for Luke Ayling (Sky Sports). Even if Ayling does stay beyond the January deadline, his long-term future is in serious doubt as he approaches the end of his contract at Elland Road in the summer.
All of this could force Daniel Farke into the market to replenish his options, and there’s a new name cropping up on the Whites’ radar.
Roberts could solve Farke’s problem
Welshman Connor Roberts came through the youth ranks at Swansea and stayed at the club until 2021, when he made a £2.5m switch to Burnley (Sky Sports). He’s gone on to register 86 appearances for the Clarets, including 14 this season.
Roberts has started eight Premier League games for Vincent Kompany’s newly-promoted side, and while that sounds like a considerable tally on paper, he’s recently fallen down the pecking order, failing to make the XI for any top-flight match since late October (Transfermarkt).
Leeds will hope that, in light of this decline, Burnley are willing to part company with Roberts in this window. According to Sunday Mirror Sports News Editor Darren Witcoop, Whites supporters should “keep an eye on” a “potential deal” to sign Roberts if indeed Ayling joins Middlesbrough. Leeds are “looking for a new full-back” after also moving on from Spence, and the Burnley man is emerging as a clear candidate.
Roberts offers Championship and international pedigree
Roberts might have dropped out of the team at Burnley, but he could be a real asset to Leeds given his vast experience of the Championship. He’s played 173 games at that level (Transfermarkt), and looked like one of the best players in the division when on form.
Last season, Roberts scored four goals and provided six assists in the league to help Burnley win promotion as champions, and those displays earned him a spot in the PFA Team of the Year. Farke will of course be aware of this, and he’ll hope it means Roberts can make an instant impact.
Of course, part of the challenge would be convincing him to drop down a level, but that’s where Leeds winger Dan James could come in handy. Speaking in Wales’ World Cup camp in Qatar in late 2022, Roberts spoke about his close bond with James after their time together at Swansea.
“We all sit together, eat together, we do everything together when we’re in camp,” he told ITV Wales. “For me to see DJ [James] and Joe Rodon do really well, having seen them growing up playing for Swansea City – I’m not doing too bad – but to see my mates doing brilliantly, being a part of something amazing and playing for their country, is something special.”
That was Roberts’ second major tournament with his country, and he’s now ticked beyond half a century of caps (54). Having scored for Wales in a 2-0 victory over Turkey at the last European Championships, he’s proven he can rise to a big occasion too.
