Familiar Leeds United exit link resurfaces amid contract uncertainty and £11m Premier League problem

Junior Firpo continues to be linked with a return to Real Betis and reports from Spain suggest the La Liga club could look to land their former player this month.

Local outlet ABC Sevilla claim Manuel Pellegrini’s side may act on long-standing interest, with a new left-back at the top of their January shopping list. The La Liga outfit have also shown an interest in Alex Moreno - another former player of theirs who left for Aston Villa in a €13.5million (£11.4m) deal two years ago - but any chance of a return to Betis will be tough, given his Premier League wages on loan at Nottingham Forest.

While there may be interest in Firpo, and the possibility of his summer Leeds exit remains, a move this month is highly unlikely. Despite recent injury issues, the Dominican Republic international remains a crucial part of Farke’s promotion plans as first-choice left-back.

Leeds maintain they expect a quiet month and so the sale of a first-choice regular would be unexpected, particularly given the issues in Firpo’s position. Sam Byram has been excellent this season but openly admitted he did not expect to be playing so much, while Max Wober cannot shake off a persistent knee issue.

And so a move this month is highly unlikely, although uncertainty remains over what will happen this summer. Firpo is one of three Leeds players with a contract expiring in June but arguably the only one who could have a long-term future at Elland Road, although Farke has refused to be drawn on the matter.

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“Too many matches for that at the moment and also, I wanted him to concentrate on his rehab then finding his rhythm back,” Farke said when asked about Firpo’s contract ahead of Wednesday’s Championship clash against Norwich City. “January is not the time to speak about this. Recruitment is pretty busy, there will be more relaxed times during the season to speak about it.”

For his part, Firpo has been admirably open about his decision to stay at Leeds following relegation and what the future might hold for him beyond this season. In an exclusive interview for the YEP’s Inside Elland Road newsletter in November, the 28-year-old explained how things are looking.

"Football is like that," he said. "One day you are here, another day you are there. But this is the topic that I've been discussing with myself since we got relegated. Obviously, I could have done the same [as others who left], I could have gone away. I have my options, I think everyone knows, it's not a thing that I can hide. I had my options and I could go away, but as you say, my family is settled here. We are doing really good at the moment, but we don't know what the future will say for me.

"I don't know even what Leeds want to do with me. I don't know yet. We haven't had this conversation yet. The manager hasn't had this conversation yet with me. I think we are just focusing at the moment in playing every game, winning every game, win as many games as possible, and get us promoted. This is the target. And if I have to leave after the season, at least Leeds are going to be in the Premier League."