Leeds United had one of the Championship’s deepest squads last season, with numerous options for the majority of areas of the team.
Daniel Farke, in spite of that, made the fewest changes game-to-game between his starting lineups of any Championship side, which meant numerous Leeds United players featured in more games and minutes than they have ever managed in their respective careers.
Leeds had issues in goal and Brenden Aaronson was also a frustrating figure at times, but most areas of the Leeds squad could be argued as among the best options to choose from in the entire division.
The central midfield and wide players are perhaps where Leeds had the most to choose from in terms of depth and quality. It meant some players were perhaps underutilised over the course of the season as pairings chopped and changed.
Photo by MI News/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesEFL expert Ali Maxwell makes Ilia Gruev and Joe Rothwell claim
Ilia Gruev and Joe Rothwell shared many of the minutes at the base of midfield, while Ao Tanaka was the most selected player by Farke for that role. That may well have been Ethan Ampadu were it not for his injury issues alongside those of Pascal Struijk.
Gruev signed for £4m from Werder Bremen and a Bulgarian legend Krasimir Balakov believes Gruev is a Champions League player but he is not convincing everyone with his efforts this season.
That includes EFL expert Ali Maxwell who has admitted he would have preferred more Rothwell action. He spoke to The Square Ball to provide his thoughts. He said: “There were definitely times towards the end of the season where I wanted to see more of Rothwell.
“And I remember Leeds games, in particular if you needed to score, I often felt that having Gruev in there with a Tanaka rather than a Rothwell — I was there thinking, ‘come on, Daniel, let’s have a bit more thrust and penetration through the middle.’
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“It’s very clear, and there have been players like this throughout history, it’s very clear that Gruev is the kind of player — and I don’t necessarily see it as much — that the manager just loves for what he does.
“Maybe it’s the calmness, the composure, the control. For me, I’m just the type of guy who’s like, ‘right, shall we just get Rothwell on? Because he can dribble and that’s a bit more fun?’
“Clearly, Gruev is someone who Farke just loves. But I’m glad to hear you say you’ve appreciated Rothwell.”
Gruev made Farke a Premier League promise but it remains to be seen if he will be able to handle Premier League football, despite his Bundesliga experience previously.
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty ImagesThe futures of Joe Rothwell and Ilia Gruev at Leeds United
It’s unclear what will happen in midfield with Leeds this summer, but Rothwell is believed to have a £7.5 million price tag. The 30-year-old is almost certain to be heading to the Championship again on loan or permanently.
Gruev is a more interesting player, given his control and out of possession work are valuable elements to his game that could come in handy in the top flight. That is not as abundantly clear, while his position in the pecking order is likely to drop further, too.
Ampadu and Tanaka should share plenty of minutes, but another new signing ought to be brought in to bolster their ranks and potentially make Gruev’s role somewhat redundant.
He could also be sold for a PSR profit, but Farke seems to value his skill-set as part of a squad. The Bulgarian international is more likely to remain as part of a deep squad for that reason.