Leeds United January transfers, takeover status and contract expectation - Graham Smyth's full Q&A transcript

Presuming they would be returning at the peak of their powers then...

Kalvin Phillips - what an option he would be as competition for the midfield and Tyler Adams, and Leeds would be £42m better off having not lost a player.

Pablo Hernandez - at his best he would surely have produced magic in the Premier League.

Chris Wood - goals, at his best and with the right service, and a different option.

Honourable mentions to Lewis Cook [Premier League operator to bolster the squad] and El Hadji Diouf [services to newspaper sales].

This is a good question. What I would say is that Leeds have been adamant with all of what you would call the ‘Marsch’ signings, that Victor Orta was keen ont hem and more than aware of their abilities prior to Marsch coming in. So perhaps it’s a case of the board being all in on a style that both Orta and Marsch feel they can put their name to? Regardless, you’re right, the board do appear to be all in with the head coach as January approaches. Those wins over Liverpool and Bournemouth feel so very significant, in that regard, but at the time all the noises coming out of the club played down any suggestion of a mid-season managerial change.

It might not get some hearts racing, it might lead to cries of a lack of ambition from some, but if you’re going for pure realism then why not Che Adams? He’s always felt like one you could see happening, which is probably why his name will still be linked with the club when he’s 39. They really wanted him, badly, previously and he’s still only 26, with a load of Premier League experience.

The man you really ought to be asking this question is the YEP’s European football nerd, Joe Donnohue.

Yes, both happening later today. Just hopping in the YEP helicopter to go up and cover the press conference.

Firstly, do the new owners want to take over right now? Or do they want to see how this season plays out, in order to pay a fair and realistic price? Difficult to get an agreement signed off and a price agreed with the team in a position that makes it almost impossible to predict their final league position. As for any guarantee of investment keeping Leeds out of trouble, there isn’t one, not a cast iron one anyway. It’d still have to be spot-on recruitment and Jesse Marsch would still have to get the best out of them and the existing players, because so many variables go into survival and relegation. Lastly, I’d also ask whether or not the 49ers are going to be the kind of owners to splash huge amounts of cash in transfer windows? I don’t imagine it’ll be free spending with no limits.

I like Pascal Struijk, a lot, and I to want to see him at centre-back eventually, but right now for the team he’s got to play left-back because to my mind he’s better than the other option. He’s got 66 games at centre-back under his belt already, so there’s little chance of him forgetting how to play the position and he’s a good footballer. Good footballers can play different positions and then return to being good footballers in their best position. But a left-back signing in January and Struijk contending for a start at centre-back makes sense to me. Out of all the central defenders at the club, he best represents the future.

Yes, fried in dairy free butter with little bits of bacon. A far cry from the boiled sprouts of our youth.

‘Yes, I’d love one, thanks.’

I asked Jesse Marsch about this after the City defeat and he said he likes the flexibility and options it gives him, because it can look a little different based on how the opposition plays. I also think he’s looking to try and lock down opposition teams a little more in the middle and make Leeds incredibly hard to play through. The big switch continues to be a bit of a problem though, doesn’t it? My main problem last night was that it looked like a centre forward was lacking at times. They won the ball well and on the rare occasions that they moved it smartly, it all faltered a little in and around the area. I’d want a striker in the areas that Erling Haaland sticks to, as much as possible.

You lot are absolutely obsessed with violence. If Popey got the jab working then I suspect he’d stay out of trouble and he’s got hands like ham hocks, but if Phil got inside then there’d be trouble. He does kickboxing, so I could see all kinds of sneaky knees and elbows creeping in.