Sponsored by
Leeds United: Faye's the answer for Whites - Matteo
Dominic Matteo believes Amdy Faye will solve Leeds United's search for an effective defensive midfielder if the club opt to sign his former Stoke City team-mate.
The ex-Leeds captain backed out-of-contract Faye to fill the one remaining hole in a strong squad at Elland Road after seeing the Senegalese international join United on trial.
* Click here to watch the latest edition of The Boot Room.
Faye trained with the club last week and was named in a strong starting line-up for last night's reserve-team fixture against Grimsby Town at Blundell Park.
The 33-year-old is a free agent after leaving Stoke last summer and he has emerged as an option to fill the specialist midfield role which has been vacant at Leeds throughout the summer.
* Click here to sign up to free Leeds United email alerts from your YEP.
Manager Simon Grayson turned to Coventry City's Michael Doyle to provide a physical presence in front of his defence last season, but
Doyle's year-long loan at United did not lead to a permanent offer, despite the club's promotion from League One.
* Click here to follow the YEP on Twitter.
Leeds instead showed a firm interest in Sheffield United's Nick Montgomery and Watford's John Eustace but failed to recruit either player, and a dozen signings made by Grayson during the summer transfer window did not include a recognised defensive midfielder. Matteo, who witnessed Faye's attributes while both were players at Stoke in 2008, told the YEP: "He's the sort of player Leeds are missing.
"There aren't many gaps in the squad but a holding midfielder is something I feel they need. I was at Stoke with Amdy a couple of years ago and I'm sure he'd fit the bill.
"He's someone who puts his foot in, likes a tackle and likes to battle with whoever he's up against. He's a quiet lad off the pitch but he's not shy on it. I've seen him do it for Stoke in the Premier League and I think he'd be well suited to the Championship."
Faye impressed Grayson enough during training sessions at Thorp Arch last week to earn an outing at Grimsby yesterday evening and, as a free agent, he is not subject to FIFA rules preventing permanent moves outside the transfer window.
His appearance at Blundell Park was as much to demonstrate his fitness as to convince Leeds of his ability after a year in which the midfielder has been deprived of competitive football.
Stoke used him in only one senior match last term, a Carling Cup fixture against Leyton Orient, and he was not offered fresh terms when his deal at the Britannia Stadium expired in June.
Email to a friend
Print this page- Politics: Mark Hookham's Westminster blog - 5.33pm
- Castleford RSPB Fairburn Ings: High wire act Swallows’ summer parade
- Worker dies on North Yorkshire Moors Railway
- Video: Restaurant reopens on Leeds Harry Ramsden’s site after £500,000 refit
- Chocolat author will tempt guests at Leeds Big Bookend Festival
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Leeds
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 26 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
