Paul Heckingbottom has replaced Thomas Christiansen as Leeds manager.
Newly-appointed Leeds United manager Paul Heckingbottom will have plenty of matters to sort out earlier in his Elland Road stint, after replacing Thomas Christiansen at the Elland Road helm.
The 40-year-old will have to tend with such issues like a current centre-back crisis that sees Liam Cooper, Pontus Jansson, Gaetano Berardi, Luke Ayling and Conor Shaughnessy sidelined through either suspension or injury.
Similarly, discipline is a huge issue, as is the creativity in the final third without Samu Saiz. But Heckingbottom must also make a decision sooner rather than later on the future of Pablo Hernandez.
The Spaniard has been in excellent form this season, having a hand in 12 goals in his 30 league and cup appearances. Scoring six, the four-time Spain international has also created six separate strikes.
However, the former Swansea City and Valencia playmaker’s contract runs out at the end of the season and Heckingbottom must convince owner Andrea Radrizzani and director of football Victor Orta that he is worth keeping.
Leeds have placed a huge amount of faith in youngsters this season, signing the likes of Ty Roberts, Jordan Stevens, Aapo Halme, Yosuke Ideguchi and more, but keeping 32-year-old Hernandez is equally as important.
Captaining the side in Leeds’ last two outings, Hernandez’s influence gives the youngsters someone to learn from. But even without that, his influence on the pitch is still far greater than most in the Leeds squad.
A replacement would set Leeds back several million pounds, and therefore Heckingbottom must look to land the versatile attacker for another year at Elland Road before it is too late.
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