Interesting findings from TEAMTalk here. There’s some serious search volumes looking for information on our Leeds U-23s players.

In essence it’s a combination of all those things. Leeds United stream all their U-23 games, which gives fans a window into squad development and the future direction of the club. This is really exciting for fans in what was, 10 years ago, a closed window. The players of tomorrow are on viewing now.

You can also add the excitement of Bielsa into the mix. There’s a clearly defined pathway for youth and U23 players into the first team, a reason we’ve been able to attract the very best in youth talent. Joe Gelhardt was a snip at £1m, but the clear progression at Leeds United and a pathway to Premier League football was obvious - and only a year or so on has been realised! According to the Daily Telegraph Bielsa apparently called and said thanks to Gregor Rioch, the Wigan academy manager for his efforts in developing Joe Gelhardt – what a guy Bielsa is!

Not only are these potential Leeds stars but also international. Charlie Cresswell and Gelhardt have already had England U-21 call-ups. Southgate made a specific point before the Euros on Leeds’ training methods a key factor in his decision to include Kalvin in the Euros who had stand out performances, most notably against Croatia. 

Weirdly there are omission in search volumes of Summerville and Drameh. This is strange given Summerville’s inclusion in some key fixtures with the first team - but I think this comes down to prominence of others inclusion in the international setup. Fans from other clubs also love the idea of finding quality players they can snipe - thus the volume. We as fans all have our favourites too so I guess there are varying factors behind this. 

The future is bright, blindingly bright to be honest. We’ve got a great bunch of players coming through and to the more cynical a tonne of assets if they decide to chase rainbows elsewhere. Afterall, not all players make it to the very top… less than 1% will make it to professional level at any standard of the game! 

The key ones to watch for us are Lewis Bate and Sean McGurk. With no real plan for signing players in the January window it does feel that there’s a lightness in the midfield area of the park - and their climb to first team football could be quick. That being said, Marcelo Bielsa is a meticulous man with clear ideals and loyalty to those players that have performed in the past. Ultimately injuries are where gaps appear in our small squad and pose huge opportunities for some players that might feel they’re miles off a spot on the green turf at ER. 

If that happens - expect interest and searches around some of these players to rocket.

As the saying goes – ‘Leeds always take more’, in this instance, we also search more!