Leeds may have their very own Wilfried Zaha on their hands – Our View

Follow us on Google Discover

As much as we hate to say it, Leeds United are becoming something of a one-man team.

The Whites are in a precarious position this season, but things would have been so much worse if it weren’t for the brilliance of Raphinha down the right side.

Time and time again this season, Raphinha has bailed Leeds out. The Brazilian is their top scorer by some way, and even when he’s not putting the ball in the net, he’s the one producing the moments of magic that unlock a defence.

In total, Raphinha’s goals and assists have earned Leeds a massive eight points this season – and while it’s not an exact science, without those points Leeds would be in the relegation zone.

Raphinha is undoubtedly a massive talent, he may be the best player Leeds have had for two decades, but in the coming months, his influence on the team could become something of a problem.

We’ve seen this before in the Premier League where one player is putting the team on his back, be it Wilfried Zaha at Crystal Palace, Jack Grealish at Aston Villa or Jermain Defoe at Sunderland, and that’s a very risky scenario to be facing, especially when players eventually have to leave.

Sometimes it works out for the best – Aston Villa have reinvested the Jack Grealish fee quite well, and are shining under Steven Gerrard, but in other cases, losing your star player can lead to an unmitigated disaster – Swansea were relegated after selling their talisman back in 2017 and it was a similar story for Sunderland after Defoe’s departure.

Raphinha is Leeds’ main man right now, but with the likes of Bayern Munich and Liverpool sniffing around, the Whites will have an incredibly tough decision to make in the coming months.

Do they let Raphinha go and reinvest the mammoth fee they’re sure to receive a la Villa and Jack Grealish? Or do they try to get him to sign that new contract and hang their survival hopes on his shoulders once again in the same way Palace have done with Zaha in recent years?

It’s a very tough situation, and Leeds need to tread carefully when deciding on what to do with their star winger.