Leeds United losing Samu Saiz for £500,000 less than what they paid for him is baffling.
Say what you want about Samu Saiz, but once upon a time he was a huge asset for Leeds United.
The Spanish playmaker joined United from Huesca two years and proceeded to dazzle the Championship during the 2017-18 campaign under Thomas Christiansen and later Paul Heckingbottom.
Going into last season, it seemed like Saiz would play a big role in anything that Leeds achieved under Marcelo Bielsa, but fast forward a year and the club have just sold him to Girona for £2.5 million [Yorkshire Evening Post].
The Whites’ transfer dealings are under the microscope after losing Pontus Jansson for a disappointing £5.5 million to Brentford earlier this month – but losing Saiz for £3 million less is dreadful business.
In terms of ability, the 28-year-old is one of the best and most talented players to grace the Elland Road pitch in recent years, and yet he’s a man who Leeds have somehow taken a loss on, having spent £3 million on him in 2017.
Some fans will argue that at least he’s off the wage bill and no longer a distraction, which is true on both accounts, but surely Director of Football Victor Orta didn’t have to accept the first bid that came in because, let’s face it, how much lower could Girona’s opening offer have possibly been?
The fact he didn’t have a good six months in La Liga last season during his loan at Getafe is significant, and probably didn’t help the Yorkshire club’s case in terms of negotiations, but Girona will know that they’ve just pulled off an absolute steal here nonetheless.
Bielsa is adored by the Elland Road faithful and rightly so, but there would be uproar if the club had received a combined £8 million for Jansson and Saiz had they been sold under Heckingbottom, for example.
Either push for a bigger transfer fee or keep him in the hope that he and Bielsa can iron out the problems, but selling for £2.5 million is astonishing.
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