Report on Leeds’ summer plans lays down challenge for Peacock-Farrell

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Bailey Peacock-Farrell has been impressive since coming in for Leeds United’s last two Championship games.

While Bailey Peacock-Farrell has had to pick the ball out of his net on five occasions in the two games that he has played for Leeds this season, he has been one of the players who has come out of the defeat to Wolves and draw with Reading with the most credit.

If it was not for the 21-year-old, the score could have been considerably worse when the league leaders came to Elland Road, while he also made a couple of fine stops when the game was in the balance at the Madejski Stadium at the weekend.

It is an encouraging start to life for the young stopper who was handed his chance after Felix Wiedwald came in for criticism and Andy Lonergan was not in a position to come back in as he recovers from a neck injury.

Nevertheless, Paul Heckingbottom is, understandably, preparing to make some changes in the summer with The Sun reporting over the weekend that a new goalkeeper is at the top of his wishlist for the next transfer window.

With Wiedwald seemingly unlikely to get another prolonged run in the team anytime soon and Lonergan also struggling to grasp his chance earlier in the campaign, it makes sense for Heckingbottom to make a move for a new stopper as Peacock-Farrell still only boasts three senior appearances for the club.

But with nine games remaining before the season reaches a conclusion, Peacock-Farrell now has a window to show to Heckingbottom why he could be good enough to be Leeds’ number one next term.

The youngster has looked bright so far, but that often proves to be the case when a player comes into the side with a point to prove. He now needs to show that he can sustain that form for the rest of the campaign, especially in the games where his teammates may take their foot off the gas as the season fizzles out and there is nothing left to play for.

Signing a new goalkeeper this summer is probably the right move from Heckingbottom, but Peacock-Farrell needs to look at the next nine games as a chance to prove that it is an understudy that the head coach needs to look for rather than a new number one.