Leeds United confirm £3.8m academy sale as Daniel Farke sanctions exit ahead of squad rebuild — YEP 8/7/24
By Joe Donnohue
Leeds United have confirmed the sale of academy graduate
defender Charlie Cresswell to French Ligue 1 side Toulouse FC.
The 21-year-old England youth international has swapped
Elland Road for Stadium de Toulouse where he will continue his career in
France’s top flight.
Leeds and Toulouse had previously arranged a £3.8 million
transfer earlier in the window but personal terms could not be agreed between
Cresswell and Les Violets. The impasse between club and player has now been
resolved, though, with Cresswell departing Leeds after a season on the fringes
at Elland Road.
Having clinched the Under-21 European Championships title
with England last summer, Cresswell earned a fresh contract at Leeds and was
handed the No. 5 shirt. However, the young defender soon had to settle for a
place among Daniel Farke’s supporting cast with Pascal Struijk, Joe Rodon, Liam
Cooper and, during the second half of the campaign, Ethan Ampadu preferred at
centre-half.
Consequently, Cresswell spent the majority of the 2023/24
campaign on the substitutes’ bench, or out of the matchday squad altogether.
The youngster is understood to have queried his lack of involvement with Farke
midway through the season, with the German expressing to Cresswell he did not
feel he was sufficiently committed to the collective cause and would not return
to the squad until he had demonstrated otherwise.
United have re-signed Rodon already this summer, this time
in a permanent transfer for a fee widely understood to be £10 million.
Cresswell’s sale for nearing on £4 million, meanwhile, represents ‘pure profit’
in an accounting sense as the 21-year-old is a product of the club’s Thorp Arch
academy.
Cresswell’s sale leaves just three senior central defenders
contracted to the club following the expiry of Cooper’s contract at the end of
June. Struijk and Rodon are expected to reprise their partnership at the heart
of Farke’s defence for the upcoming season, while Ampadu is anticipated to
return to the base of midfield.
Leeds are expected to announce the signing of back-up
goalkeeper Alex Cairns from Salford City for a nominal fee, while the club are
actively looking to make reinforcements to a number of key positions after
offloading several fringe players during the early portion of this summer’s
transfer window.