Looks like I might be getting my wish after all.
I said last week that I didn’t want Gaetano Berardi to be at the club longer than he has to, predominantly based on his disciplinary record, well now it looks as if the club are in the same boat.
According to a report from Football Insider, Leeds United are making planning to get rid of the Swiss defender, as he failed to receive a new contract during the recent string of renewals, which saw the likes of Mateusz Klich, Pablo Hernandez and Kalvin Phillips among others receive new deals.
It just touches on something that Noel Whelan said over the weekend regarding the 30-year-old. Speaking to Football Insider, he said:
“Berardi won’t cope in the Premier League, simple as that. Leeds have handed out a lot of new contracts to players recently and have given them to players they think have something to offer going forward. If they felt Berardi could thrive in the Premier League, I’m sure he would have got a new contract by now. There’s no sign of that. His loyalty has been excellent and his performances have been good at times. But you can’t have players like Berardi in the Premier League.”
So words like that, and news of him failing to get a contract really should be a call to action for the club, rather than waiting for his contract to simply run out, they should be proactively trying to sell him.
Darren Bent said that there would be a number of clubs in the Championship that could do with his services, so why not put them to the test? The fact that they aren’t willing to give him a contract is the biggest indicator of all that he clearly doesn’t have a future at the club, so why drag it out longer than it needs to be? Rather than waiting for the offers to come in, they should be proactive in trying to get him out of the club.
And then use that money, which might not be a lot given that his value on Transfermarkt is £450k, but it’s still better than nothing, and use those funds in January to help the push for promotion.
Should Leeds jettison Berardi in January?
Yes
No
At least then he can be some use to us, even if it is in spirit rather than in person.