With Leeds United being safe in the Premier League, supporters can relax for the remainder of the campaign.
It hasn’t all been smooth sailing for Daniel Farke’s men, but ever since that now infamous second half at The Etihad against Manchester City back in November, Leeds have looked like a solid mid-table side, and not one battling relegation.
A large reason as to why United have been able to defy the odds and avoid the drop has been the impact that summer signings such as Noah Okafor, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Anton Stach have had on the side.
Leeds United rejected “11th-hour” bid for key player last summer
The makeup of this Leeds team may well have been very different, though, if the 49ers hadn’t stuck to their guns last summer.
Pascal Struijk, 26, has been phenomenal for the Whites this season, with the Dutchman making 32 Premier League appearances up to this point.
His passing ability and the fact that he is left-footed adds a great deal of balance to United’s defence alongside Jaka Bijol and Joe Rodon.
However, Leeds’ backline could have looked very different this season. A recent report from Beren Cross and The Athletic claiming that an offer arrived for Struijk late on in the transfer window last August.
Club sources claimed that “it was the kind of sum which may have been entertained in June, but, at the 11th-hour, Struijk was too important to lose.”
The report does not state how much the bid for the defender was. But, after the campaign he has enjoyed in West Yorkshire, you would imagine that Struijk’s value would have skyrocketed even further this season.
49ers must offer Pascal Struijk a new deal at Leeds United
With Struijk entering the final year of his contract following the conclusion of the campaign, it would be in Leeds’ best interests to nail the defender down to a new long-term deal.
Whilst Struijk has been at fault for a few of our goals in recent weeks, including the one scored by Chelsea at Wembley, he has been incredible for us this season for the most part, and we cannot afford to lose him on a cut-price fee or even a potential free transfer in 2027.
Struijk is one of the players we should be building around as we aim to solidify ourselves in the Premier League, and we are already short on left-sided centre-backs in the squad as it is.
Hopefully, a new bumper deal will discourage any interest from our Premier League rivals when it comes to making any fresh approaches for Struijk.
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