Leeds United legend Noel Whelan backs Bailey Peacock-Farrell to keep number one shirt.
Speaking to BBC Radio Leeds, Noel Whelan has said that Leeds United’s Bailey Peacock-Farrell has a great chance of keeping the number one shirt next season.
The 21-year-old’s emergence in the first team was a rare positive for Leeds in an otherwise terrible last few months of the season, with Peacock-Farrell displacing the error-prone Felix Wiedwald back in March.
Consequently, signing a goalkeeper is probably less of a priority for the Whites had the academy graduate not proven himself such a bright prospect in the senior side.
Nevertheless, United will still need another keeper to compete with the youngster, with Andy Lonergan the back-up option at the moment, but former Leeds hitman Whelan feels as if he has done enough to keep the jersey.
“He’s got a great case for it [remaining as number 1] because he’s got better since he’s come in,” Whelan admitted on BBC Radio Leeds.
“We’ve seen the improvements in an area of the field which has been so disappointing. Even at the start when we were having a great run we were never convinced about Wiedwald.
“He has come in, he has shown that his distribution is absolutely spot on and some of the saves that he has made this season have been tremendous.”
Leeds took a big backwards step regarding goalkeeping options last summer, having lost Marco Silvestri and Rob Green and replaced them with Wiedwald and Lonergan.
Neither of those two should be in Paul Heckingbottom’s first-team squad in time for August, but whoever is signed certainly has a fight on his hands to keep out Peacock-Farrell, who has a taste of senior football now.
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