Leeds should target Dwight Gayle if Arsenal recall Eddie Nketiah

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Leeds United are reportedly at the risk of losing Eddie Nketiah in the January transfer window.

According to a report from the Sun, Eddie Nketiah is considering a move to Bristol City after failing to break into Leeds United’s first-team squad.

Nketiah started off his Leeds career with a bang, scoring three times in his first four appearances for Marcelo Bielsa’s side. The Arsenal man has four goals and an assist to his name in eight appearances but he has only started two of those games.

Bielsa has Patrick Bamford as his first-choice striker and the former Chelsea man has started every game in the league so far. This has reportedly left Nketiah frustrated on the bench and Arsenal, who have the option of terminating his loan deal in January, could do so with Leeds’ rivals Bristol City also interested in him.

That would be a huge blow for Leeds considering that they will only have young Tyler Roberts as an alternative to Bamford. Bielsa will have to dive into the market for another striker if Nketiah leaves and who better than Dwight Gayle to give them the push that they need to return to the Premier League.

Gayle’s career has always been a strange one. His performances in the Championship make it look like he is a world-beater but he has struggled to deliver the same kind of output in the Premier League. The Englishman is yet to play a single minute of football for Newcastle and with Andy Carroll now fit, it is unlikely that he will get a chance.

The 28-year-old has 59 goals and 16 assists in 100 Championship games which is a complete contrast to his Premier League record of 21 goals in 99 appearances. Gayle scored 24 times for West Brom in the English second tier last season and if he can reproduce some of that brilliance in the business end of the season for Leeds, Bielsa and his side’s chances of returning to the top flight will increase considerably.

Leeds should do all they can to hold on to Nketiah but if they fail to do so, Gayle would be an incredible replacement. A move away from Newcastle could be the best thing for the striker at this stage of his career and, at Leeds, he could restart his career.