Leeds United are closing in on the transfer of Chelsea defender Ethan Ampadu according to various reports, with the versatile player holding an unfortunate statistic to his name.
With Chelsea selling a number of their experienced players this summer, including club legend Cesar Azpilicueta, it now means that Ethan Ampadu is their longest-serving player.
Yet, the 22-year-old has only made a grand total of 12 appearances for the club, with his debut coming way back in 2017 when he was just a teenager, since then, it has been loan after loan for the Wales international.
A player that has the ability to operate at the heart of the defence and in the middle of the park, he is now close to being Daniel Farke’s first signing at Elland Road.
Leeds United are looking for an instant return to the Premier League following their relegation to the Championship last season, with their defence being one of the biggest issues as to why they went down.
That puts a lot of pressure on Ampadu because he walks into this team straightaway and he will be tasked with trying to mend a lot of issues around him.
Leeds’ defence needs wholesale changes
Even though the relegated Leeds stars are dropping a division, and they should be able to cope with playing a lesser league, those wholesale changes still need to be made.
From Luke Ayling to Liam Cooper, the duo have been great servants to the club, but their time is up and replacements need to come in.
It probably wouldn’t be a bad idea to keep them on board for depth in quality, but the whole backline, the goalkeeper and the midfield now need reconstructing, or else, they will spend another 12 months in the Championship.
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