Burnley have signed Charlie Taylor and there are reports that Rob Green could be on his way to Sunderland or Middlesbrough.
As expected, Charlie Taylor has completed his move to Burnley after refusing to sign a new contract with Leeds or to play in the final game of last season. Thankfully, we are still entitled to a ‘development’ fee because of his age, though the amount has still to be settled. If the two clubs fail to agree then the fee will have to be settled by a tribunal.
An official club statement said "We wish Charlie well for the future”, which is a lot more generous than most of the other comments I’ve seen about him on the internet today. It remains to be seen what sort of season Taylor will enjoy at a club who seem intent on selling their best players, with Michael Keane on his way to Everton and Andre Gray also likely to depart.
Frustrating as it is to lose our best youngsters to clubs with a smaller fanbase, that is the reality of life these days, with even the minor Premier League clubs able to offer wages we can’t match due to their TV revenues. We won’t be able to hang on to the best of our young talent until we get back into the top division ourselves.
Meanwhile, the Yorkshire Post have suggested that the former Leeds bosses at Sunderland and Middlesbrough are looking at Ron Green. Both clubs have parted company with their existing first choice keepers since the end of last season, and Boro would give Green the chance to join up with Garry Monk once again, the man who brought him to Leeds from QPR.
It had been thought when Felix Weidwald first arrived from Werder Bremen, he was going to be the backup for Green, with Bailey Peacock-Farrell going out on loan and Marco Silvestri recovering from a knee operation. But the YP are now suggesting that the German could be a contender to become the first choice keeper, which would allow Green to leave.
One man who isn’t going just yet is Toumani Diagouraga, who is hoping to get a chance under the new manager, despite the surfeit of central midfielders we currently have. And we also have the frightening prospect of Bellusci being back in the squad after his loan spell came to an end, at least until we find someone to take him off our hands.
The club is still working on various possible incoming players, but I would have thought that after Taylor’s departure we need a new left back. Young Tyler Denton has yet to play a league game, and the only other option is to continue to play Berardi there out of position. Hopefully the powers that be at the club will have addressed this issue before we start the new season.