Back in the summer, Leeds made a bid for Rangers forward Ryan Kent, and while Steven Gerrard did not disclose the value of the offer, he sent a hands-off warning to Marcelo Bielsa.
As quoted by Sky Sports, the Gers boss said: ‘The message for sure is ‘hands off’.’
Bielsa won’t necessarily be kicking himself that he didn’t land the ex-Liverpool attacker given Leeds’ fine start to the campaign.
However, there’s no denying that Kent – who Rangers paid £7.5 million for – has been superb so far this term.
In 12 Scottish Premiership appearances this season, the 23-year-old has scored four goals and assisted one more.
In those outings, WhoScored shows that the Rangers No.14 has recorded some impressive attacking statistics.
Kent registers three shots per game, while he also records 2.2 key passes and 2.3 dribbles per 90 minutes in Scotland’s top flight.
If he did make the move to Elland Road, we think the attacker would’ve made Jack Harrison perform even better than he has done.
Both players have occupied the left flank so far this term.
WhoScored shows Kent has made six appearances as a left-forward and five as a left-sided attacking midfielder, while all of Harrison’s five games have come in that same latter role.
The Leeds No.22 has done well in the Premier League, scoring once and assisting once while also registering 2.6 key passes per game as WhoScored shows.
If the former New York City winger had Kent breathing down his neck though, we think that the added competition for his place would’ve spurred him on to do even better.
With a player like the Rangers star waiting in the wings, Harrison would presumably have been wary of losing his place – even more so if Bielsa had actively decided to sign the player himself.
The Argentine doesn’t just buy players for the sake of it.
For now, it seems like Harrison doesn’t need the extra motivation. However, we can only imagine how well he’d be performing if Kent moved to Yorkshire.
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