Leeds United have suffered a transfer blow with Swansea City boss Paul Clement confirming his plans for Kyle Bartley.
Swansea’s Kyle Bartley enjoyed a brilliant loan spell with Leeds
Kyle Bartley’s brilliant loan spell at Leeds helped take the Whites to within touching distance of the play-off places in the Championship. But unfortunately for the Yorkshire side, his form has also acted as something of a curse.
Swansea City boss Paul Clement made no secret of the fact that the centre-back’s spell at Elland Road has seen the former Arsenal trainee force his way into his plans at the Liberty Stadium (via Wales Online), which will undoubtedly be a major blow for Garry Monk.
The Yorkshire Evening Post reported that Monk wants to bring Bartley back on a permanent basis if he is kept on as manager this summer, but Clement’s comments may leave plenty of Leeds fans wondering who they may now switch their attention to.
But with Andrea Radrizzani looking to buy Massimo Cellino’s shares in Leeds and become the full owner of the club (via Yorkshire Evening Post), Bartley’s situation arguably presents the perfect opportunity for the Italian to prove exactly how determined he is to take the club back to the Premier League.
Swansea City manager Paul Clement has confirmed that Bartley is in his plans
The 25-year-old’s quality at the heart of the defence and leadership has arguably made him as important as any other member of the Leeds squad this term, and thus, Radrizzani would be foolish to not try and tempt the Swans into accepting a bid in spite of Clement’s comments.
Bartley has just one year left on his contract with Swansea (via Yorkshire Evening Post), so it may not take the club’s entire transfer budget to make the kind of bid that Swansea simply cannot turn down.
Some may question whether Bartley would be keen to return to Leeds if the Welsh side stay up, but Aston Villa and Newcastle showed last summer with their respective acquisitions of Tommy Elphick and Matt Ritchie that some players do deem dropping down a division to be a wise decision for their career if the right move is offered to them.
Leeds United manager Garry Monk has earmarked Bartley as a priority target
Bartley has spoken of his admiration for Leeds and Monk, and so it may not be out of the question to suggest that the chance to return may appeal to him if he doubts how much first-team football he will enjoy at the Liberty Stadium.
And if Radrizzani does make a move happen, Clement’s comments may actually help Leeds out as, while they suggest that the Whites will have to pay big money for Bartley, it would send out an incredibly positive message to other targets if the owner was able to pull off what currently appears to be an unlikely deal.
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