It took under 4 games to write off this Cellino flop — View — Football League World 11/5/24

BY SAM TABUTEAU

Edgar Cani played just four games for Leeds United. Is he the worst signing of the Massimo Cellino era?

Edgar Cani's brief loan spell at Leeds United was a forgettable one, as he failed to make any impact on the team in just 49 minutes of play.

 Cani's departure paved the way for Chris Wood to become a cult hero at Elland Road, as the New Zealand striker found success at the club.

 Massimo Cellino, heavily involved in transfer dealings, admitted he never saw Cani play, highlighting the questionable transfer policy during his tenure.

Massimo Cellino's tenure in charge of Leeds United was full of controversy and poor signings. But it only took Leeds four games to write off Edgar Cani as a mistake.

The Albanian striker arrived on loan from Serie B side Catania in January but only played a total of 49 minutes across four appearances for Leeds.

With Leeds struggling towards the bottom of the Championship, Cani was bought in to provide some much-needed firepower but was unable to convince manager Neal Redfearn of his talents.

Cani arrived to provide back-up to Steve Morison. But even as the Englishman continued to toil in front of goal, Cani was not called upon to replace him, a sign of how little an impression he'd made on the squad.

Cani didn't start a game for the Whites and was left out of the matchday squad for the final five games of the season due to disciplinary reasons.

Cani, alongside five other Leeds players, reported ill the day before their game at Charlton Athletic.

With Redfearn unconvinced by the group's excuse, he dropped them for the rest of the season.

It brought to an end Cani's disastrous loan spell, and he returned to Italy at the end of the season.

Cellino was heavily involved in Leeds' transfer dealings, with his tenure eventually coming to an end when he was suspended for breaching regulations regarding the sale of former striker Ross McCormack.

But the maverick Italian admitted in a press conference that he'd never watched Cani play.

It was a damning indictment not only of the player himself but also of the transfer policy in place, which had seen star striker McCormack leave and be replaced by a number of imports from across Italy.

Whilst the policy saw the likes of Marco Silvestri and Gaetano Berardi through the doors at Elland Road, the success of those deals were an anomaly compared to the amount of players that came and went during Cellino's time in charge of the club.

Cani simply never looked good enough to play Championship football and with Leeds battling against relegation, Redfearn wasn't prepared to take a risk on a striker who looked out of his depth every time he came on the pitch.

The forward returned to Italy with Serie C side AC Pisa and found some form. But despite helping them to promotion, the fact he never managed more than five goals for the Italian side spoke to the idea that he wasn't ever cut out for second-division football in England.

Cani's time at the club would bring about one benefit, however, as his departure paved the way for New Zealand striker Chris Wood to make his mark at Elland Road.

Wood averaged a goal every other game for Leeds and was the replacement they'd been crying out for after McCormack's departure.

Whilst Cani's four-game stint at Leeds is quickly forgotten, he inadvertently laid the foundations for the arrival of Wood, who'd go on to become a cult hero at the club.