Is it time Leeds brought Paudie O’Connor into first-team fold?

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Leeds United have been linked with a move for another young centre-back, so perhaps it is time to call Paudie O’Connor up.

If Leeds want to win some of the sceptical fans over when it comes to their transfer policy of signing a number of young prospects to bolster the academy squads – almost to the point that some are concerned that it appears to be more of a priority than strengthening the first-team at times – then keeping the conveyor belt of starlets pushing for a first-team spot going strong is essential.

The Whites have had no problem promoting young players to the first-team in the past, and with their transfer policy coming under scrutiny from some supporters, it is hugely important that Thomas Christiansen keeps the path open for when the under-23 players are ready to step up.

So perhaps now is a good time to open that path for one of the men who features regularly for Carlos Corberan’s side and has recently spoken of his desire to seek a move away if he does not get more first-team opportunities.

In an interview with the Limerick Leader at the end of December, Paudie O’Connor suggested that leaving Elland Road in some capacity could become an option if he does not manage to break into the first-team in the near future.

“It was nice to be involved [with the first-team], but going forward, in the next couple of months, I will probably be looking for first team football again because if it doesn’t come at Leeds maybe somewhere else because the U-23s is good and all, but there is not that level of competitiveness that I am used to or like,” he said.

But surely with Leeds signing young Ajax defender Pascal Struijk and with the Whites not exactly having a significant number of senior centre-back options at their disposal, Christiansen should seriously consider bringing O’Connor into the fold.

At 18 and two years younger than O’Connor, it makes sense for Struijk to head to the under-23s, and if the process is about development, he should arguably get the chance to feature regularly, perhaps at the expense of O’Connor.

With Liam Cooper suspended for the next four games, bringing another centre-back into the first-team fold certainly makes sense. And if Leeds are not going to bolster their options by signing a player, calling O’Connor up as cover for the likes of Pontus Jansson and Matthew Pennington and making it clear that the path is definitely there surely makes some sense.