Leeds United signing Yosuke Ideguchi on brink of personal disaster, but Whites could benefit

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Leeds United loanee Yosuke Ideguchi could actually benefit from missing the World Cup.

Leeds United signed Yosuke Ideguchi in January hoping the Japan international could play a key role for the Whites next season.

They loaned him to Spanish side Cultural Leonesa, and this appears to be somewhat of a mis-step.

While Ideguchi can probably consider himself better off for having missed a truly terrible 2018 for Leeds, his experience at Cultural Leonesa has poor too.

Despite arriving with much fanfare, he has struggled to earn a starting role and last week told Japanese outlet Weekly Playboy that he has struggled to adapt to life in Spain and faced communication issues.

The worst for Ideguchi is that his World Cup dream is hanging by a thread after he was omitted from Japan’s recent squads despite helping them qualify for the finals.

Missing out on the tournament would be a personal disaster for Ideguchi, but it could actually help him become a success for Leeds.

If he goes to Russia, it puts him another few weeks away from settling in for Leeds.

It could be late-July before Ideguchi even returns to England, and leave him playing catch up to the rest of his teammates who have already begun pre-season.

For World Cup bound Pontus Jansson this won’t be much of an issue. Ideguchi is a different case.

He has struggled with adapting in Spain, and missing the World Cup would provide him with the time to get used to life in England.

He can settle, find a place to live, start to get familiar with the country, and begin pre-season with the rest of the squad.

In hindsight Leeds would have been better off keeping him with the under-23s and letting him spend the past few months acclimatising with them.

That may be necessary next season, but if he can get a fast start with the first team in pre-season then Ideguchi has a chance of becoming a success for Leeds despite his Spanish failure.

Going to the World Cup will delay him, and while missing it will be a disappointment, it could also focus him on his club situation and put him in the best position to succeed at Elland Road.