Leeds ready to cash in on ‘desperate’ forward in major U-turn after he caused war in summer

Leeds United could reportedly ‘be willing’ to let Wilfried Gnonto move on in January despite sternly telling him he was not allowed to leave in the summer.

Gnonto started off his career with the Whites in decent form. Indeed, his first Premier League campaign saw the Italian notch a couple of goals and chip in with four assists.

Leeds were then relegated from the Premier League, and a number of the bigger names left the club.

That included Tyler Adams, Brenden Aaronson, Robin Koch and Rodrigo Moreno, among others.

It did not include Gnonto, but that did not stop him attempting to make his escape from Elland Road.

Indeed, Everton made more than one attempt to sign the forward, and he was desperate to move, telling Leeds he “felt he was unable to play” for them after they turned an offer down, highlighting his desire.

That led to him being banished from the first team for a short period, with Leeds telling Gnonto he was “not for sale.”

He was reintegrated into the side after a handful of games out, but his impact has waned since last term.

Gnonto could now be sold

Indeed, Gnonto has scored just one goal this season, and assisted only one more. Those returns have come in 16 league matches, but he’s only been afforded six starts.

As a result of his meagre returns, Leeds are considering making a big U-turn on their summer stance and letting him go.

That’s according to Football Insider, who state the Whites ‘could be willing to let’ Gnonto move on in January.

Indeed, it’s suggested they could be looking to recruit in the winter, as the sale would ‘boost the transfer kitty’ for the window.

Leeds won’t get offers as big

It’s not clear what price Leeds would be looking to receive for Gnonto.

However, they received a £25million offer from Everton in the summer, when the winger was looking to force his way out.

They probably won’t see that type of offer now, with Gnonto struggling to break into the side in the Championship, despite the fact he looked like he was blossoming into a star in the Premier League.

The irony is that his career path might have been better had Leeds let him go then, but they remained stern and kept a player who’s now not impacting them very much at all.

However, there’s no guarantee that his form wouldn’t have dropped off the same way it has if he was allowed to make the move.

In any case, Gnonto’s said to be ‘desperate’ to play regular first-team football again, so would once again welcome the opportunity to make his way out the door at Elland Road.

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