Noel Whelan hints Leeds could benefit from selling Samuel Saiz

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Samuel Saiz angered a number of Leeds United fans at the weekend with his reaction to being substituted.

Noel Whelan has seemingly suggested to BBC Radio Leeds that Leeds may actually benefit from selling Samuel Saiz in the summer after his reaction to being substituted during the Whites’ win over Barnsley at Elland Road.

Paul Heckingbottom’s men may have got back to winning ways, but it was a difficult afternoon and the performance would have done little to convince the supporters that the side had turned a corner.

One of the players who struggled to impress was Saiz. The Spanish playmaker was superb during his first few months in Yorkshire, but has been considerably more disappointing since the turn of the year, having not scored since November and having provided just two assists in 2018.

And he failed to hide his anger at being subbed off in the final minutes during Saturday’s clash – though it is not entirely clear whether his frustration was down to Heckingbottom’s decision or because of his own performance. Nevertheless, Whelan suggested that his attitude is a major concern and hinted that there needs to be discussions in the summer regarding whether he can be forgiven for his mistakes because of his quality.

He told BBC Radio Leeds: “Petulance, childish, not a team player there. And as for doing things like that in front of the children sitting right behind you watching, what sort of an example is that?

“You’ve probably done the two worst things that you’d want to do as a footballer, which is spitting at another opponent and then coming off here when you’re winning the game, you should be supporting your teammates, supporting your manager, and in the end you prefer to go in there and start kicking boards and water bottles about, slapping your shin pads around. That is not what I would want in the changing room.

“Yes, he’s got skill, but do you need that around? Do you really need people like that that think they’re above the manager and above the other players? No, you do not.”

While Saiz’s actions in the FA Cup earlier this season were disgraceful, it was often worth persevering with the £3 million signing – fee reported by the Yorkshire Evening Post – because he is one of the players who is capable of making something special when the side desperately need inspiration.

However, he has rarely produced any moments of real magic in the last few months, and it is thus, becoming harder to argue that it is worth keeping faith with him.