Marcelo Bielsa risks costing Leeds United with each game he refuses to play Eddie Nketiah, as Football Insider understand Arsenal included a penalty clause in our loan agreement.
The striker was lured to Elland Road at the close of the summer window following a personal meeting between Victor Orta and the young ace, with our Director of Football playing on the relationship he shares with Gunners head coach Unai Emery to smooth over negotiations.
Orta put a price on youth being the answer to replacing Kemar Roofe, though, as the deal for Nketiah is said to have seen United pay more than £2million as a loan fee, as well as taking on the 20-year-old’s £35,000-a-week contract.
A Leeds source has allegedly now added that United are at risk of paying a significant penalty fee if Nketiah is not getting regular minutes under Bielsa, with Arsenal looking to guarantee their youth product’s time at Elland Road is profitable for all involved.
It is not acknowledged to what sum the fine would amount to, only that we could be on the hook for a major outlay if the boss continues to stand firm in his refusal to change his preferred line-up outside of injuries and suspensions.
Nketiah is still waiting for his debut in the Championship, having been omitted from the matchday squad against Bristol City given his late arrival in West Yorkshire. The boss then named the youngster on the bench against Wigan Athletic on Saturday, as a Patrick Bamford brace ensured he saw no need to tinker with his forward options at the DW Stadium.
But, depending on the stipulations of the alleged clause, Bielsa may soon need to regularly hand Nketiah minutes from at least the bench, regardless of Bamford’s efforts in the starting line-up. Otherwise, he risks costing United more and more every week, as it would be unlikely that Arsenal are happy with their product being our cup striker when he had first-team opportunities on the horizon in North London.