The contract of veteran Leeds United playmaker Pablo Hernandez has been a hot topic of late.
Paul Heckingbottom says Leeds United want to be more proactive during the summer transfer window.
Leeds continue to harbour hopes of promotion to the Premier League, with only six points separating themselves in 11th and sixth-placed Sheffield United.
Even so – and despite the fact Heckingbottom has been in the job less than a month – thoughts of next season have already entered the Leeds boss’s head.
“It’s at the back of your mind, definitely,” Heckingbottom told BBC Radio Leeds on Thursday. “However, three weeks in we’re still looking at these players and pushing these players, because we know what we want their performance to look like and we’re working towards that every day.
“And continually – regardless – you’re always looking and assessing players, whether they’re your own or players at other clubs who could be potential signings, so that won’t change but priority at the minute is these games in front of us, these players in this building because they’re ours and they’re going to get all our care and attention.”
Pablo Hernandez is the first team regular out of contract at Leeds this summer, and one the club will perhaps be keen to tie down after his four goals and six assists from 25 Championship starts this season.
However, when asked if the Spaniard features in his plans for next term, Heckingbottom replied: “All of them – every player, exactly the same. So, regardless, contracts, non-contracts, obviously people whose contracts are running out have to be at the front of the queue in terms of dealing with that and making decisions.
“However, there’s still others, who we’ll want in the squad here, others’ football may be out on loan. There’s lots of different considerations to have.
“And they’re the things we’re looking at and getting the best idea about the players so that come the end of the season we’re in a position where we can be more proactive if you like and making things happen we want to happen, rather than just responding to things from other clubs or things from players.
“We want to be proactive and develop a squad that we want by getting players in, moving players out and be in control of that.”
The loan deals of Pierre-Michel Lasogga and Matthew Pennington are also due to expire at the end of the campaign, while Marcus Antonsson, Lewie Coyle, Mallik Wilks, Mateusz Klich, Luke Murphy and Yosuke Ideguchi should return to Leeds from their temporary spells.
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