The 29-year-old spent a couple of seasons with Leeds United.
By virtue of the fact that he is yet to start a Premier League game this season, Bournemouth winger Max Gradel might be interested in leaving the South Coast in January – and former club Leeds United should offer him a chance to come home.
It would seem as if the 29-year-old is on borrowed time with the Cherries after failing to win a game under Eddie Howe since October 22.
He could be there for the taking and Italian businessman Andrea Radrizzani would instantly endear himself to the Leeds faithful if he could facilitate the dream return.
The Daily Mail reported this week that Radrizzani is on the brink of buying a 50 percent stake in the Whites from Massimo Cellino, with an option to purchase the other half if United fail to win promotion into the Premier League this season.
He would not strictly be exploiting the supporters’ sentimentality by bringing such a popular figure back to the club because the reality is that Garry Monk could do with a winger of Gradel’s pedigree. There is room for quality on United’s wing.
Hadi Sacko has drawn comparisons with the Ivorian but he lacks the same productivity and bite, whereas Kemar Roofe has blossomed in a number 10 role in recent weeks and his future certainly seems to lie in some sort of central position.
The Gradel whom Leeds fan fell in love with from 2009 until 2011 would walk into that XI. Granted he is 29 now but he still has plenty left to offer and Monk should float the idea if and when he meets with Radrizzani for the first time.
With another three-and-a-half years left on his Bournemouth deal, he probably would not go for peanuts, but if the price is right then it makes sense.
He could travel to Gabon in January for the Africa Cup of Nations with Ivory Coast, in which case he’d be missing for three weeks if the Elephants – the defending champions – were to reach the final. By the same token, he has not kicked a ball in almost two months and his spot in the 23-man squad isn’t guaranteed.
The way things are going, Leeds, fourth in the Championship and six points adrift of the top two, will expect to be in the mix for promotion come February. If he goes to Gabon then he returns a sharper player and ready to resume his romance with the club.
Either way, it’s a good move and would not be a political signing designed to win over a scorned fanbase following Cellino’s stronghold. It would certainly paint him in a positive light, no question, but the priority will be to aid the club’s promotion efforts and Gradel, as fans know, can certainly do that.
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