Leeds United reveal retained list - 15 players to exit Elland Road this summer

A total of 15 players will leave Leeds United when their contracts expire this summer, including a number of Thorp Arch youngsters.
LEAVING LEEDS - Eunan O'Kane is one of the 15 players leaving Leeds United this summer at the end of his contract. Pic: GettyLEAVING LEEDS - Eunan O'Kane is one of the 15 players leaving Leeds United this summer at the end of his contract. Pic: Getty
LEAVING LEEDS - Eunan O'Kane is one of the 15 players leaving Leeds United this summer at the end of his contract. Pic: Getty

The Whites have submitted their retained list to the Premier League, confirming they will say goodbye to Gaetano Berardi, along with players who have not been part of Marcelo Bielsa's Thorp Arch set-up since his arrival, namely Ouasim Bouy and Eunan O'Kane.

Former Dutch youth international Bouy, 27, joined Leeds on a free transfer from Juventus in 2017 and signed a four-year deal. Other than loan spells with Cultural Leonesa and PEC Zwolle he has not played since making the move from Italy to England. His last competitive outing came in May 2019 for PEC Zwolle.

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O'Kane joined Luton on loan in August 2018 but suffered a double leg break the following month and required surgery. In January 2020 he agreed to return to Kenilworth Road on an 18-month loan deal but is yet to return to competitive action.

Barry Douglas, who spent the season on loan at Blackburn Rovers, will become a free agent when his two-year deal runs out.

Leeds have also confirmed they have offered a new contract to left-back Gjanni Alioski and a first professional deal to scholar Alfie Hughes.

Hughes, 18, turned down a scholarship at Manchester United to join Leeds in 2019. The diminutive attacking midfielder, once called up for England Under 15s, suffered a serious knee injury in pre-season after he arrived at Leeds but returned to action this season and recently scored a stunning goal against Derby County's Under 18s .

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His fellow scholars Owen Bray and Taylor Ragan have had their scholarships extended as Leeds United take up automatic options within their existing deals.

Leaving the club are Berardi, Bouy, Douglas, O'Kane and youngsters Cole Gibbon, Niklas Haugland and Matthew Turner.

Gibbon, 19, signed a first pro deal at Leeds in August 2020 but played just three minutes of Premier League 2 football this season, while former Norway Under 18s striker Haugland, now 19, made the bench just once for Mark Jackson's Under 23s in the 2020/21 title-winning campaign.

Another 19-year-old, goalkeeper Turner, spent this season on loan at Haverfordwest County, playing nine Cymru Premier fixtures.

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Leeds will release eight scholars when their current deals end this summer, namely Emmanuel Amissah, Jimiel Chikukwa, William Fewster, Ethan Kachosa, Samuel Leverett, Aaron Pilkington, Maximus Rigby and Cooper Skerry.

A club spokesperson said: "We would like to express our thanks to those players who will leave the club in the coming weeks and we wish them every success in the future."