Leeds United should avoid reunion with promotion hero at all costs – it would be a panic buy: View
LeedsAllOver · Niall Togher · 2026-08-18T19:04:31+00:00 · nguồn gốc
When everyone is fit, Leeds United’s team looks quite formidable for a side that is about to enter just its second season back in the Premier League.
But in certain areas we lack depth. This was evidently apparent in our final pre-season game against Augsburg. Brenden Aaronson started on the left wing as Noah Okafor continues to work his way back to full fitness.
Behind James Trafford, another goalkeeper is needed, as well as another striker. Especially in the aftermath of Joel Piroe’s imminent move to West Ham.
James Justin proved last season he is capable of doing a job on either side of the defence. But another natural left-back would also be a useful addition to Daniel Farke’s squad.
Leeds should not reunite with Junior Firpo this summer
With United in need of another left-back, some supporters on social media have begun to entertain the idea of Junior Firpo rejoining the Whites.
However, this seems unlikely. A report from Jose Manuel Rodriguez suggests that Real Betis are not considering selling the defender this summer.
The plan is for Firpo to step up and perform next season after he struggled upon his return to Betis last summer.
The 29-year-old was limited to just 12 La Liga appearances last season as injuries hampered his campaign.
When Firpo did play, however, he was poor. It’s fair to say most Betis fans want to see the back of the left-back.
Firpo was sensational for us in the Championship, earning cult hero status as we won promotion. But for as fondly as we remember the defender, there’s a reason we chose not to renew his contract last summer.
He’s simply not good enough for the Premier League. Whilst he has one of the catchiest chants of any player who has played for Leeds, I just cannot justify the decision to bring him back.
I heavily doubt we would, as the 49ers have proven to be smarter than that, but if we did sign Firpo once again as a last resort, it would just stink of a panic buy.
James Justin scoring in pre-season could actually come back to bite Daniel Farke
I mentioned earlier how Justin had an impressive first season at Leeds, with the full-back providing terrific cover on either flank.
Filling in at left-wing back for the injured Gabriel Gudmundsson against Augsburg in pre-season, Justin was impressive again and even got himself on the scoresheet.
Hopefully this performance does not work against Farke and the 49ers think we can rely on the Englishman once again to be responsible for covering multiple positions.
Justin himself has struggled with injuries in the past, and if he picked up an injury whilst Gudmundsson is already out, then we do not have anyone who could play at left back.
A backup left-back is not a glamorous addition, but it’s a necessary one. That way, Justin can focus on providing cover for Jayden Bogle whilst also being a useful last-resort option at left-back himself.