Hard-ball Leeds United tactic and contract absence gives Whites upper hand in transfer negotiations

The club will also be required to stand firm with regard to offers that do not meet their valuation of certain players, namely their exciting young attackers.

Crysencio Summerville and Willy Gnonto will not return for pre-season testing and training on July 2 with the majority of Leeds’ squad as the pair have been representing the Netherlands and Italy, respectively, at the Under-21 European Championships.

Gnonto, Summerville and various others on international duty will be granted extended leave, instead expected to report back on July 10.

During the interim period, Leeds are hopeful their takeover by 49ers Enterprises will be green lit by the EFL, making way for a long-awaited managerial appointment. These two, rather consequential, events will in time provide much-needed clarity on the future of various Leeds squad members.

It is hard to imagine a scenario in which Leeds’ incoming manager decides his team would be better off without the likes of Gnonto and Summerville, though – both are established members of the first-team squad and represent fearsome attacking potential in the Championship.

Of course, should an offer exceeding Leeds’ valuation of these players come in, that decision may be taken out of the new coach’s hands. In Gnonto’s case, the YEP understands United will not be bound by release clauses in negotiations.

In short, they can be expected to play hard-ball with any team hoping to lure one of their premium attacking talents.

Gnonto has attracted interest, but Leeds are yet to receive any offers for the Italy international teenager. Likewise, Summerville has been the subject of supposed interest from abroad, but interest only.

Both remain contracted at Elland Road for at least another three seasons, which gives United the upper hand in negotiations. If the club were able to keep one or both in LS11 for the team’s bid to return to the top flight, it would represent something of an achievement in this summer transfer window.

Should either be persuaded to remain, if Leeds were to fail in their attempts to earn promotion, assurances could be provided that the club would not stand in their way at the end of the 2023/24 campaign, if transfer interest persists. But that’s a long way off, 46 games to be precise.

The prospect of Summerville on one flank, with partner-in-crime Gnonto on the other, is a daunting vision for any Championship defence. Cardiff City’s rearguard will not require a reminder of the latter’s ability to pick them apart during the Whites’ FA Cup Third Round replay at Elland Road earlier this year.

The pair scored eight goals between them across all competitions last season, in a struggling side, under four different coaches, acclimatising to different styles of play from one month to the next. Their value to the team in a division where the average level of opponent is lesser than where they have already shone, is considerable.

It is hard to picture an Italy international, one who features regularly for Roberto Mancini’s Azzurri, appearing in the Championship, but Gnonto’s case in particular is an interesting one. He could join a Serie A club in his native Italy, but how frequently would he play, in a league which has been historically reluctant to persevere with young players and their oscillating form?

Would he be tempted by another relegation battle in the Premier League, or sitting on the substitutes’ bench at a more established top flight club?

At 19 years of age, Gnonto has his entire career ahead of him. A year spent tearing up England’s second tier could prove to be even more valuable to his stock long-term, than the breakout season with Leeds last year.

He and Summerville, just 21 years old himself, will harbour ambitions to test themselves in European competition, as is their right. Unlike their more senior Leeds teammates, though, the two wingers are quite likely to discover such opportunities at some point in their careers regardless.

Leeds may ultimately be moved to sell one or both this summer but at the very least, the club will receive a good price. Potentially more valuable, though, is their retention. One would be a shot in the arm for Leeds’ promotion bid; two would be an unqualified transfer window success.