Should Leeds United miss out on promotion to the Premier League this season and therefore face having to loan out multiple players again for the next campaign then they could perhaps find better loans at clubs that can actually afford to buy the players should they do well.
The coming weeks are going to see multiple sides plead poverty with the Whites as they work for permanent deals, and pray that Leeds United stay in the Championship and therefore feel financially forced, or forced through contractual conditions, to loan out again.
Maximilian Wöber is a prime example, he’s done well for Borussia Monchengladbach this season and yet the Bundesliga side have been pleading poverty saying they can’t afford to pay anything like €10m or above for him.
That’s wanting a good player for much less than he’s worth, and it seems now they’re looking elsewhere for a free transfer. We suggested earlier this week that Gladbach’s pursuit of Sturm Graz’s David Affengruber, who will be a free agent, showed they’d decided to kill the Wöber idea after Leeds had the temerity to demand something like what he’s worth.
Bild state that as fact today, reporting that Gladbach ‘cannot and does not want to pay the double-digit million fee for loan professional Maximilian Wöber’.
This isn’t the only loan where, after some good service, the destination club simply refuse to pay a reasonable, or even seemingly hugely discounted price, for a Leeds United player.
Diego Llorente was wanted by PSG in January but now AS Roma don’t want to pay even something around €5m, unless their stance changes. Marc Roca was seen as an amazing arrival for Real Betis, but things have changed slightly in recent weeks and now Betis want an almighty discount and are crossing their fingers that Leeds miss out on promotion.
These are players who have done well, and there’s clearly no honour from loan clubs.