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Gray warns of Leeds United 'player overload'
The swathe of senior professionals likely to play in Leeds United's first public reserve friendly this evening is a demonstration of why summer transfer dealings are required to be a two-way street.
A cast of more than 20 players set off with Gary McAllister to the Republic of Ireland last week, but the range of options available to United's manager was more clearly displayed by the crowd of experienced individuals who were left behind.
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The exclusion of Tresor Kandol and Anthony Elding from the touring party was brought on by illnesses contracted by both players, but Elding is part of a crowd whose time with Leeds is poised to end this summer.
Ian Westlake, Sebastian Sorsa, Curtis Weston and Sebastien Carole appear to be surplus to McAllister's requirements – Carole was allowed to embark on a brief trial with Le Havre last month – and all four players will take to the field for a second-string clash against Farsley Celtic tonight while United's first-team prepare for the last game of their Irish tour at Shelbourne tomorrow.
All eyes have been on McAllister's incoming deals this summer, with three completed to date, and he is keen to acquire at least one more striker before the season kicks off with Leeds' visit to Scunthorpe United on August 9.
But former United boss Eddie Gray does not expect McAllister to feel even slight concern about the make-up of his pool, and says his Scottish compatriot will be as anxious to avoid over-loading his squad as he will be to line up new arrivals.
Gray said: "The bonus for Gary at the start of this summer was that his squad was in good shape even without any signings.
"My feeling would be that the squad at Leeds is already strong enough to finish above most teams in League One next season, and it sounds like he'll bring in a couple of new players before the league game at Scunthorpe.
"He obviously wants a couple of strikers to go on top of what he's got already but even if he wasn't to get them I'd still feel very confident. Funnily enough, at the moment he'll probably be just as wary of having too many players at the club.
"If you look through the squad, there's cover in almost every position and there are all sorts of midfielders to choose from. Certain guys look like they'll be on their way and it's important to get the balance right. As a manager you need enough options but you don't want players hanging around with nothing to do and no chance of playing.
"A settled summer is probably the best thing that Leeds could have asked for, and there's no point in spending money for the sake of it. If we’d gone into the Championship last season then the club would have had no choice but to invest heavily, but this squad has the talent to go up automatically.”
Neil Kilkenny is another player who will return to the fold at Elland Road once the Australian international’s involvement at the Olympic Games concludes next month, and the addition of Andy Robinson on a free transfer from Swansea City has heightened the competition for midfield places at Elland Road. Seven recognised midfielders made the trip to Eire, minus Kilkenny, and McAllister has given the majority of his players an hour-long run-out during their two matches against Galway United and Bray Wanderers.
His squad play Shelbourne tomorrow and will then travel direct from Dublin to London to prepare for Saturday’s friendly against Barnet at Underhill, but Gray believes the first glimpse of McAllister’s thoughts for next season will come during the friendly planned at Darlington a week tonight.
“The team we see at Darlington will probably be pretty close to the team that Gary’s thinking of for the first game of the season,” said Gray, who was in Galway for last Wednesday’s friendly and will attend tomorrow night’s clash with Shelbourne.
“We’ll be a week and a half away from the Scunthorpe match and that’s when the final preparation starts. It’ll be very interesting to see what he’s planning because a lot of players are chasing the same positions.
“Leeds didn’t lack much last season but they were short of width at times, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s something Gary looks to address before the season starts.
“Robinson’s a good signing and he’ll make a difference on the left-hand side, but a natural right winger would give the squad something a bit different.
“But as things stand, Leeds have probably got the biggest wage bill in League One, and they can’t afford to let that rise to a stupid level.
“I think Gary’s aware of the limits you have to set in this division and, knowing him, I’m sure he’s been very realistic about the players he’s looked at and the players he’s tried to sign. This has been the first summer for a good few years when Leeds haven’t needed a complete change, and that’s a positive thing.”
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Weather for Leeds
Sunday 12 February 2012
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Light rain
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