Leeds United man’s possible exit, Georginio Rutter delay and Raphinha transfer clause situation

Orta prefers to bring his recruitment work to fruition in the summer, with the market is less volatile and far more open in terms of who is available, but in 2023, needs must. The Whites entered the window with the ideal scenario of a left-back and a striker on their minds and with those boxes now ticked off they’re mulling over options with regards to any further additions.

But there’s work to be done regardless, with situations and decisions facing Orta, Jesse Marsch and some of the club’s youngsters.

Here are some of the questions YEP readers have been asking, and what we know with two weeks left in the window.

Why did the Georginio Rutter deal take so long to complete?

Transfers are always complicated, but when it's increasingly likely that a club is to be taken over by a minority shareholder, that is especially true. Although the move to bring in Rutter from Hoffenheim sounded like it was in advanced stages last weekend, there was still much to debate and sort out, not least the little matter of how much it would cost, who would pay it and over what length of time.

The price did rise over the course of the negotiations but not beyond the figure Leeds were comfortable paying, in line with their valuation of the young striker. They felt £28m, a club record, reflected his ability and potential.

As last week progressed and a deal still had not been finalised, with Leeds and the players’ camp tight-lipped, there were at least reassuring noises from France as sources suggested the delay was simply a combination of the transfer requiring a green light from both Andrea Radrizzani and 49ers Enterprises, and the exact terms between the clubs. The YEP understands that discussions over how the deal was to be structured took up a significant chunk of time.

But even after Rutter flew in on Thursday evening, fans had to wait around 48 hours for an announcement. Had it not been for the Whites' trip to Aston Villa on Friday, confirmation would have come sooner. The club's entire first team operation was in Birmingham, although head of medicine and performance Rob Price remained to give Rutter a once over, before himself travelling to Villa Park.

The Frenchman woke up in a Leeds hotel on Friday morning and headed to Living Care for his scans, then to Manchester for cardiac screening. It was planned, at one stage, for him to join club officials in the directors' box at Villa, and then it was latterly thought that a Monday announcement would be best. But a Friday night decision was taken to get it boxed off the following day, and with Rutter keen to get out into Leeds and celebrate with his family, the club put together the announcement and confirmed the deal.

Do Leeds United have a sell-on clause in the Raphinha deal with Barcelona?

In a word, no. Leeds received the money for the Brazilian winger up front, just like the Kalvin Phillips cash. Those sums, totalling £92m, were necessary to help with the summer squad rebuild. At the time Manchester City confirmed that they could end up paying Leeds £45m for Phillips, but a question mark over the Raphinha deal has recently popped up due to speculation over his Camp Nou future.

Although a departure so soon into his time with the LaLiga giants appears highly unlikely, in any case the YEP can confirm that Leeds don't have a sell-on clause.

What's happening with Charlie Cresswell?

His loan spell at Millwall has been a bit hit and miss, with form, formation and pecking order combining to restrict his Championship starts. Right now, he's out of the team and sitting on the bench. And with expressions of interest from a couple of Millwall's divisional rivals in a permanent move for the young centre-back, there are some decisions to make. Leeds are yet to recall him and won't, until such a time as a concrete offer is made that meets their valuation and meets with the approval of Cresswell and his advisors. There's Millwall to take into consideration too, because they won't be keen to lose Cresswell without getting someone in to replace him in their squad. But a permanent exit, this month, remains a possibility for the 20-year-old.

What about Joe Gelhardt?

He too could head out of Elland Road this month, with Swansea, Blackburn, Wigan Athletic and Hull City among those asking questions about the young forward. Victor Orta admires Swansea, their style of play and their manager Russell Martin, who has been in contact with Leeds loan manager Andrew Taylor over the possibility. But play-off hopefuls Blackburn remain in with a shout.

And Cody Drameh?

There's interest, there's always interest in Drameh, who could feature again for Leeds this week against former loan club Cardiff City, as he did in the initial FA Cup tie. Drameh has impressed with his attitude and his training performances at Thorp Arch this season but the fact remains that two seniors stand in his way. With Luke Ayling winning the shirt back from Rasmus Kristensen, the Danish international and summer signing finds himself on the bench. It's difficult to see, therefore, where Drameh gets the minutes he wants and needs. Burnley are among those in the Championship who like the right-back. His contract situation makes it seem almost inevitable that a move away will be a permanent one, or a loan with a view to a complete exit at the very least.

Could Jamie Shackleton go elsewhere for more game time?

Although he's played 23 of 26 Championship games on loan for Millwall, Shackleton has played 90 minutes since October and has had to settle for appearances from the bench in all of his last eight games. Five of those outings have consisted of 10 minutes or fewer of action. There are other clubs lower down the Championship table who would like to take Shackleton on loan if possible, but even setting aside the fact that they could not match the financial contribution Millwall are making towards the versatile youngster's wage, and there's a strong feeling that his best course of action is to stay and fight for a place at The Den.

What's Leo Hjelde's situation?

He turned down Dutch second tier interest to go to Rotherham in the Championship, where Leeds will watch him closely over the second half of the season. The Millers find themselves in a relegation battle but Hjelde's debut pleased his loan club and his parent club. He played left-back for 89 minutes in an impressive 4-0 win at home to Blackburn Rovers, playing a big part in the first minute opening goal. Rotherham boss Matt Taylor said: "He showed good quality, created the first goal, I think there's more to come from Leo. It's incredible, you don't expect, coming from a Premier League club, the Championship to take a toll but he was flagging towards the end because he's not had that intensive a game so he'll get better."

Could anyone else go out?

Looking at Sean McGurk's game time this season so far it feels like a good time for him to go and play some football elsewhere, and there is some loan interest in Kristoffer Klaesson. Should the Norwegian youth international head out then Leeds could dip into the transfer market to bring in another young stopper. Max Dean and Amari Miller are another two who could find themselves in the EFL for the remainder of the season.

Could anyone else come in?

Leeds are assessing their options when it comes to further transfer window additions. Azzedine Ounahi is a potential target, although his likely £25m price tag - vastly increased since Leeds asked in the summer - and the interest of Serie A leaders Napoli could complicate, if not scupper that one. Victor Orta has other targets in mind, and there's always the possibility that movement elsewhere will change the availability status of one or two later in the window.

The club are tracking a teenage centre-back in Portugal but there's no certainty that a deal will be done this month. Having got their two priority targets through the door, Leeds are content right now but could still add one or two before the deadline.