Jonny Howson is currently back where it all started in 1997.
Leeds welcomed the man born in Morley back to Thorp Arch in August as he took up a player-coach role following his departure from Middlesbrough, returning to the club he joined at the age of nine before going on to make 225 appearances.
Daniel Farke is able to call up U21 players into the Premier League, so when Beren Cross of The Athletic was asked if that could also happen to Jonny Howson this season, an interesting response was given.
Jonny Howson can play for Leeds this season
None of Howson’s 225 appearances for Leeds came in the Premier League, although that could change if Farke was to suffer an injury crisis in his squad this season.
Cross states that the 37-year-old is registered to play for the first-team this season just in case, although there is currently no intention to use him unless an emergency occurs.
Howson – who is considering a management role – is actually match fit too, at U21 level at least, having played 90 minutes in seven out of his eight appearances for the Leeds U21 side so far this season.
Most of those displays have come as a central defender – barring one outing in defensive midfield against the West Brom U21 side in Premier League 2 action.
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Farke is already having to leave out Pascal Struijk and Sebastiaan Bornauw, having opted to start Joe Rodon and Jaka Bijol in the centre of defence last time out against West Ham.
Anton Stach and Ilia Gruev also missed out on the starting XI for that 2-1 win as Sean Longstaff, Ethan Ampadu and Ao Tanaka were preferred, so it really will take a lot for Howson to feature this season, as much as Leeds fans would love to see it happen.
Daniel Farke must consider fielding Jonny Howson if survival is secured with games to spare
To have a club legend in the U21 side and not give him a Premier League debut for his boyhood club would be a devastating development, although Farke needs to be sensible and prioritise survival.
Credit: Catherine Ivill – AMA/Stu Forster/Getty Images
However, if the German manages to achieve this with games to spare, he would be foolish not to throw Howson – part of our Halloween XI – on from the bench for his Premier League debut with Leeds.
It would be a romantic moment, one also representing a full circle moment for Howson almost 30 years on from when he first joined Leeds at the age of nine in 1997.