The final piece of the puzzle remains missing, and the gap is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Leeds United’s picture feels incomplete.
The club’s recruitment team were frustrated not to secure a right winger before the transfer deadline but believed they had sufficient cover on the flanks to manage. Whether that proves true or not will only become clear in May, though supporters are already anxious about the direction things are heading.
Few expected Brenden Aaronson to be the player with the most minutes on the right wing so far. Injuries to Daniel James and Wilfried Gnonto have only magnified the failure to add depth in that area at the end of the window.
That shortfall has led to frustration among fans and an obvious imbalance in attack. On the opposite flank, Noah Okafor has impressed since his £18 million move from AC Milan. The Swiss winger has looked Leeds’ most dangerous forward, and with two goals to his name as joint-top scorer, he’s underlined the lack of productivity on the right.
Central attacking additions Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha arrived as free agents and have contributed just two goals between them in a combined 800 Premier League minutes. The lack of supply to the front line hasn’t helped.
Manager Daniel Farke has repeatedly admitted that his side may lack the individual quality to match most Premier League clubs, meaning they must rely on togetherness, fitness, and cohesion. While unity and conditioning are there, cohesion sometimes is not. Too often, the transition from defence to midfield and into attack breaks down — and one word keeps resurfacing: creativity.
Leeds had been searching for a right winger capable of drifting inside as a No.10 — someone with invention and end product. Whether Facundo Buonanotte or Harry Wilson would have been that answer is up for debate, but either would have strengthened Farke’s options. The club certainly thought so, having pursued both in the final week of the window.
As weeks pass, the absence of that creative spark grows more obvious. The two players responsible for the most shot-creating actions are central midfielders Anton Stach and Sean Longstaff. Stach and Aaronson also top the list for goal-creating actions, with three apiece — a commendable effort, but also a sign of the team’s limitations in attack.
Leeds are currently aiming to average a point per game. Should that target slip, reinforcements in January will be unavoidable — though that could require making financial room before June to stay within PSR limits.
With eight matches still to play before the window opens, much can change. Yet as things stand, the likelihood is clear: Leeds United will need to turn to the winter market to complete the picture.