There are a number of Leeds United fans who will be hoping that Giuseppe Bellusci does not return from his loan spell at Empoli, but relegation has made that a possibility.
Leeds United’s Giuseppe Bellusci is set to return from his loan at Empoli this summer
With Leeds currently experiencing a major shortage of senior centre-back options following the end of Kyle Bartley’s loan, Whites fans may have to potentially face up to the prospect that outcast Giuseppe Bellusci’s Elland Road career may not be over just yet, especially given the events on the final day of the Serie A season.
Bellusci is an unpopular figure amongst most of the Leeds fanbase due to his often scarcely-believable defending where the next mistake never appeared to be too far away, but it previously seemed that he may have already played his last game for the club having joined Empoli on loan for this past season with TuttoMercatoWeb reporting that the Italian side could sign the centre-back permanently.
Bellusci was relegated with Empoli this past season
However, their relegation on the final day of the season has seemingly thrown the chances of a permanent deal into some doubt.
Should a deal with Empoli not materialise, it seems difficult to imagine that there will be a particularly long queue of takers for the 27-year-old, and thus, perhaps it would not be out of the question to suggest that he could be back at Leeds for pre-season, looking to prove a point to the Whites fans who have written him off.
If that proves to be the case, he will surely be hoping that Aitor Karanka is not the man who Andrea Radrizzani chooses to be Garry Monk’s successor.
Aitor Karanka is the favourite for the Leeds job
Karanka is the current bookies favourite and has been heavily linked with the post with former Middlesbrough colleague Victor Orta being given the director of football role with Leeds (via Daily Mirror).
And it was the Spaniard who was looking on as Bellusci put in one of his worst displays in a Leeds shirt when the Whites travelled to the Riverside Stadium to face Boro in September 2015.
The centre-back scored a comical own goal as he headed past goalkeeper Marco Silvestri who had come off his line for what should have been a simple catch from a cross, and he arguably should have done better for the first goal as his poor header allowed David Nugent to score from close range.
Bellusci endured a torrid afternoon against Boro in September 2015
Boro would go on to win 3-0 in a game that many Leeds fans will point to as the reason why the partnership of Bellusci and Sol Bamba – who had been a colossus only months earlier – should not have lasted as long as it did.
And given how woeful Leeds were on that day, it would hardly be a surprise if Karanka remembers Bellusci’s contribution very well, and thus, has major doubts about bringing him back into the fold if he is given the job.
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