Whites must repel moves for Becchio - YEP 9/1/13
By Phil Hay
In the season when Jermaine Beckford scored 34 goals for Leeds United – the zenith of his career at Elland Road and the best record of any Leeds striker for more than half-a-century – 19 of them came before the first weekend in January.
Luciano Becchio was one goal short of an identical tally prior to Saturday’s FA Cup tie against Birmingham City but the close comparison with Beckford’s mid-term strike rate is an example of how the Argentinian’s finishing touch has flourished since August.
A spate of penalties has helped his cause but Becchio’s haul of 19 goals is far beyond the reach of any other player at Elland Road. El-Hadji Diouf and Michael Tonge are immediately below him on five, and Tonge is no longer part of United’s squad.
It is understandable, then, that assistant manager Mick Jones is concerned about the prospect of bids for Becchio arriving this month and worried, too, about the implications of the club receiving an offer they can’t refuse. Becchio’s fifth season with Leeds is proving to be his most influential, or his most individually successful.
Jones described Becchio as “hot property” – the Championship’s third highest goalscorer and an obvious magnet for clubs on a certain budget – and Wigan Athletic were the first team to be linked to him last month, rumoured to be considering a £4million bid.
More serious interest in Becchio is understood to have developed at the upper end of the Championship during the latter stages of 2012, with Hull City believed to have identified Becchio as a viable answer to the one obvious area of weakness in their squad – the absence of a specialist centre-forward and a dependable finisher.
Hull’s attention on Becchio is thought to have waned, however, and the club directed cash in other directions on Monday by offering a total of £3.5million for midfielder David Meyler and winger Robbie Brady.
But Jones’s comments over the weekend made it clear that Leeds will do well to reach the end of the January without being asked to consider Becchio’s position.
The 29-year-old has 18 months left on his contract at Elland Road and, as such, is less vulnerable at present than other players who have moved on from United at inopportune moments.
The club’s former striker and all-time leading goalscorer, Peter Lorimer, also feels that Becchio’s body language is that of a professional who is comfortable in his current surroundings.
“His attitude’s been great this season, right from the start,” said Lorimer.
“He looks like a happy player and happy players don’t really push for moves. You can’t stop clubs from submitting bids, obviously, but I don’t look at him and think ‘there’s a player who wants out.’
“He’s clearly loving his football at the moment and so he should be. It doesn’t get much better for a striker than hitting the net 19 times as quickly as he has. It’s the best feeling going because that’s what you’re paid for and it’s what you’re always judged on, fairly or unfairly.
“There were times last season when, probably for the first time, he seemed a bit unsettled and a bit discontent but Luciano’s the sort of lad who, if you keep his mind right, will do the business for you.”
The 2011-12 season is the one blemish on Becchio’s CV in England, beginning with a hamstring injury and filled with questions about his fitness and his attitude.
He scored three times before Christmas and did not show any sign of consistency until after the sacking of former manager Simon Grayson in February 2012.
Ross McCormack contributed heavily while Becchio grasped for form, finishing one goal short of 20 and ending the season as the club’s top scorer, but the forwards have traded places in the past sixth months.
Hampered by the ankle operation he underwent in September, McCormack’s total of goals this season stands at two, one of those scored in a league game.
Jones stood in for an ill Neil Warnock on Saturday and was impressed again by Becchio’s knack of appearing in the right place at the right time. The forward’s goal on the hour earned Leeds an FA Cup third-round replay against Birmingham, giving United the chance of a meeting with Tottenham Hotspur in round four.
Jones said: “Luciano’s hot property at the moment. Common-sense tells you that. I’d be worried if certain clubs came in for him, in this country and out of this country.”
Becchio became one of Leeds’ highest earners when he signed his existing deal in December, 2010, tying himself to the club until the summer of 2014, and he is not believed to have intimated a desire to leave this month.
Warnock, meanwhile, insisted before Christmas that he would be under no pressure from United’s new owners, GFH Capital, to sell his leading players, saying: “I don’t think we’ll lose anybody we want to keep.
“I can guarantee that while I’m in charge and they’re in charge, there’ll be no key players leaving here – unless we want them to leave.
“We need every good player. We want to look upwards, not downwards or sideways.”
Lorimer said: “I can understand why other clubs might be looking at Becchio but good, available talent is quite hard to find for a fair price in January.
“Everybody wants to sign players but for certain clubs, it’s as important that they get through January without any of their star men leaving. I’d say there’s a small number of truly in-demand lads at this time of year and if you’ve got one of them then it stands to reason that you’d want to keep him.
“These are always quite anxious times because you never quite know what’s going to happen in the transfer window but the reassuring thing for me is that when I look at Becchio’s body language, I see a player who seems quite happy where he is.”
Becchio made his own position clear in an interview with the club’s official match-day programme on the afternoon of their recent win over Middlesbrough.
The former Barcelona reserve, who won that game with goals in either half, said: “Leeds feel like home to me. I’m very happy and I want to stay here for a long time.”