Sol Bamba’s departure means Leeds boss Garry Monk should hand two academy starlets their first-team chance

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The Championship side have an excellent record when it comes to giving academy prospects their first-team chance.

Sol Bamba’s departure leaves Leeds with a shortage of options at centre-back

Sol Bamba’s departure has left Leeds United with just three recognised centre-backs in their first team. And while that lack of depth may have some supporters imploring Garry Monk to go out and find a free agent to fill the void, surely the better option is to do what the Whites have done so successfully in recent years: turn to the academy.

Currently, United have Liam Cooper, Kyle Bartley and Pontus Jansson to call upon, while right-back Luke Ayling can also be utilised in the centre if necessary and midfielder Toumani Diagouraga was used there in pre-season.

Liam Cooper is one of just three recognised centre-backs in the senior squad

Though the latter two are unlikely to have been the options that Monk would have wanted to have had at his disposal following the window, there is arguably enough ability between the five to make the head coach think twice about using some of his remaining wage budget on bringing a defender in on a free transfer who may perhaps just be a short-term option until the winter window opens.

Instead, Monk should make Jack Vann and Paul McKay the latest academy graduates to be handed their first-team chances at Elland Road.

Leeds United manager Garry Monk

The former is a regular in the under-23 side, while McKay spent much of pre-season around the first-team so may not need too long to adjust should he be called into the senior squad.

With three very capable centre-backs ahead of the pair in the pecking order, there would be no need to throw them in at the deep end straight away, but it surely makes sense to hand them the occasional substitute appearance so that they are much more prepared for a prolonged run in the side if the team suffer a series of injuries or one of the defenders’ form gets called into question.

And while the Peacocks’ current position in the Championship suggests that it would be a gamble to throw them in, Monk only needs to look at the ever-increasing line of academy graduates who rose to the challenge and quickly established themselves as first-team regulars in recent years to know that it could be a risk that pays off enormously in the long run.