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Tom Coates

How players who have left Leeds United during the Marcelo Bielsa era have fared since departing

Many members of the current Leeds United squad were already on the books at Elland Road prior to the arrival of Marcelo Bielsa as head coach in June 2018.

The likes of Luke Ayling, Liam Cooper, Stuart Dallas and Kalvin Phillips are very much part of the furniture but almost everything around them has transformed completely.

The aforementioned four themselves have transformed completely, developing from capable Championship figures into established Premier League players.

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In order to rejuvenate the club, Bielsa has had to be ruthless at times and the list of players cast aside since his arrival is extensive.

He has also had to lose players he would have perhaps preferred to keep to ensure Leeds did not fall foul of Financial Fair Play regulations.

LeedsLive have checked on the progress of each player that has left since June 2018 and was signed as a first-team player or featured at senior level whilst with the Whites.

2018/19:

Marcus Antonsson

After failing to light up League One whilst on loan at Blackburn Rovers, the forward was frozen out upon his return to Elland Road and joined Malmo in his native Sweden.

He impressed initially but after being sent out on two loan spells, departed in December 2021 and is now a free agent.

Ronaldo Vieira

The midfielder was initially part of Bielsa's plans but Leeds had to offload the highly-rated midfielder in order to balance the books.

He joined Italian side Sampdoria but has struggled to steer clear of injury and has seen his progress hampered as a result, although he remains on the books of the I Blucerchiati.

Luke Murphy

Murphy joined Leeds from Crewe Alexandra in 2013 and his career has gone full circle, leading him back to Crewe via a spell with Bolton Wanderers.

2019/20:

Caleb Ekuban

Ekuban struggled in front of goal for the duration of his stay at Elland Road before rediscovering form in Turkey with Trabzonspor.

He has even earned caps for the Ghana national team but has yet to score a Serie A goal since leaving Trabzonspor for Genoa.

Paudie O'Connor

A wholehearted centre-back, O'Connor captained Leeds at under-23 level before making a handful of senior appearances and then tasting senior football on loan at Blackpool and Bradford City.

He signed a permanent deal with the latter in 2019 and remains in West Yorkshire.

Jack Clarke

The sky appeared to be the limit for Clarke when he burst on the scene at Elland Road but underwhelming loan spells back at Leeds and then with Queens Park Rangers and Stoke City have prevented a similar breakthrough happening at Tottenham Hotspur.

Now 21, the pacey attacker has recently been linked with a loan switch to League One outfit Sunderland.

Aapo Halme

Halme remained in Yorkshire after leaving Elland Road in 2019, joining Barnsley for an undisclosed fee.

The Finnish defender has struggled with injury but still managed to rack up 60 appearances for the Reds.

Mallik Wilks

Like Halme, Wilks left Leeds for Barnsley but the forward departed on loan midway through his first campaign at Oakwell, joining Hull City.

His deal was then made permanent but he has made a total of 88 appearances for the Tigers, scoring 30 goals.

Pontus Jansson

The charismatic figure enjoyed cult hero status at Elland Road but departed for Brentford in 2019, helping the Bees clinch promotion to the Premier League in his second season with the club.

He captains Thomas Frank's side and is closing in on 100 appearances for the club.

Liam Kitching

Kitching dropped down to League Two with Forest Green Rovers after being allowed to move on by Leeds, but shone and has since moved back up to the Championship with Barnsley.

Tyler Denton

Uche Ikpeazu battles with Tyler Denton (Clive Mason/Getty Images)

The left-back scored on his first-team debut for the Whites and also represented England at youth level but failed to live up to his potential and was sold to Stevenage in 2019.

He spent one season with the Boro before joining Chesterfield, who also retained the defender for one campaign before allowing him to join National League side King's Lynn Town.

Sam Dalby

Dalby was one of the many player signed as part of the influx of young additions in the early stages of the Andrea Radrizzani but despite featuring under Bielsa in his first pre-season, failed to make a first-team breakthrough.

He left for Watford in 2019, where he also found himself confined to the under-23s, but has now found a home in the National League with Southend United.

Hadi Sacko

Sacko boasted blistering pace and showed promise but flattered to deceive too often and was loaned out to Las Palmas and then Ankaragucu during Bielsa's first campaign.

After leaving Elland Road permanently in 2019, he spent two seasons in Turkey with Denizlispor before moving to Romania and penning a deal with CFR Cluj.

Oriol Rey

The young Spanish midfielder progressed at a promising rate at Thorp Arch and was handed a professional contract in May 2018, but after returning from a loan spell in his homeland with Conquense, Rey was allowed to join Real Valladolid.

His two years there were spent mostly with their 'B' side and he signed for Spanish second tier side Mirandes on a permanent deal in July 2021.

Samuel Saiz

Saiz looked as if he had the ability to fire Leeds to the Premier League but he proved to be as frustrating as he was mesmerising.

He now represents Girona in the second tier of Spanish football and made 91 appearances for the club, scoring eight goals and registering 14 assists.

Hugo Diaz

Diaz was an assured presence under Carlos Corberan for Leeds' under-23s but was not relied upon by Bielsa and was allowed to join Getafe's 'B' team in 2019.

After a year with Getafe, he left and had spells with Korona Kielce of Poland and Salamanca of Spain. He recently made the switch to Bergantinos, who play in the fourth tier of Spanish football.

Oliver Sarkic

Whereas many of the young players Leeds recruited from overseas left England after being released by the club, Sarkic opted to remain.

He scored five goals in 37 outings for Burton Albion before joining Blackpool, although Tangerines boss Neil Critchley recently confirmed he is free to leave the club, as reported by the Blackpool Gazette.

Bailey Peacock-Farrell

Having been dislodged as number one at Elland Road by Kiko Casilla, Peacock-Farrell followed Charlie Taylor and Chris Wood in swapping Leeds for Burnley.

Competition has proven stiff at Turf Moor and the 25-year-old has had to go on loan to Sheffield Wednesday for regular starts.

He has, however, established himself at international level with Northern Ireland and regularly lines up alongside his former teammate Stuart Dallas.

Yosuke Ideguchi

Following a disastrous stay in West Yorkshire, Ideguchi returned to former club Gamba Osaka and saw considerably more action in his homeland of Japan.

His form recently earned him a move to Scottish giants Celtic, who are managed by former Yokohama F. Marinos boss Ange Postecoglou.

Kemar Roofe

After swapping Leeds for Anderlecht in 2019, Roofe struggled for fitness but still managed to impress when he was available to play in Belgium.

He linked up with Steven Gerrard at Rangers in 2020 and has scored 28 goals in 57 games, as well as establishing himself at international level with Jamaica.

Clarke Oduor

Despite being a key figure in Barnsley's great escape in the 2019/20 Championship season, Oduor has found himself on the fringes of the first-team for the bulk of his Oakwell stay.

The emergence of the impressive Callum Styles has limited his game time, although the 22-year-old has still managed 14 league outings this season.

Tom Pearce

Formerly one of the most coveted prospects at Elland Road, Pearce fell out of favour under Bielsa but has settled at Wigan Athletic.

He suffered relegation with the Latics in 2020 and although not always a starter in League One, the left-back is rarely absent from matchday squads.

Vurnon Anita

Anita was fresh from a Championship title-winning campaign with Newcastle United when he arrived at Elland Road but failed to replicate the form he showed at St James' Park.

The 32-year-old had a brief spell in Bulgaria with CSKA Sofia after departing West Yorkshire and now represents RKC Waalwijk in the Eredivise.

Having been capped at senior level by the Netherlands over a decade ago, Anita now represents Curacao.

Lewie Coyle

Coyle was a dependable figure at various youth levels for Leeds but the presence of Luke Ayling at right-back made progression at senior level difficult.

He made his loan move to Fleetwood Town permanent but stayed for just seven months before joining his hometown club Hull City and helping the Tigers lift the League One title.

Pawel Cibicki

Cibicki joined Polish outfit Pogon Szczecin after his time at Leeds came to an end having been sent out on various loan moves.

However, the former Whites winger has been banned from playing football for four years by the Swedish FA after being convicted of offences related to match-fixing by a court of appeal in his homeland.

2020/21:

Will Huffer

The 23-year-old kept a clean sheet on his debut in the Championship but has fallen into non-league since leaving Leeds.

After signing for Bradford (Park Avenue), he briefly bounced back to the EFL with Bradford City but has since dropped back down.

He currently represents Burgess Hill Town of the Isthmian League South East Division having already turned out for Stalybridge Celtic, Guernsey and AFC Telford United this season.

Kamil Miazek

The goalkeeper was on the pitch with Leeds teammates celebrating promotion at Derby County's Pride Park in July 2020 but was released by the club ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.

He joined Georgian side Dinamo Batumi before returning to his native Poland to join fourth tier outfit Warta Sieradz.

Jay Roy-Grot

It never worked out for the towering forward in the Championship and he how plies his trade in Demark with Viborg FF after a brief spell in Germany with VfL Osnabruck.

He plays regularly in the Danish top flight, operating out wide or up front for a side that sit 8th in the table.

Conor Shaughnessy

Shaughnessy joined Rochdale in February 2021 but was unable to prevent the club slipping into League Two and less than five months after joining, agreed terms with his former loan club Burton Albion.

2021/22:

Ezgjan Alioski

Alioski ended a four-year stay at Elland Road ahead of the current campaign, swapping Leeds for Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia.

The charismatic wideman has made a seamless transition to life in the Middle East and has already registered four goals and five assists for Al-Ahli, despite operating at left-back for most of his 16 league appearances.

Gaetano Berardi

The former Whites cult hero is yet to sign a deal elsewhere but according to Swiss outlet 442.ch, via Inside Futbol, he is training with Sion in his homeland.

Ouasim Bouy

One of the most bizarre signings in the history of the Leeds United, Bouy now plays in Qatar for Al Kharaitiyat.

It is mystifying to think that the 28-year-old, who never made a single first-team appearance for the Whites, spent four years on the books at the club.

Barry Douglas

The left-back returned to his former club Lech Poznan last summer and has made 13 league appearances for the pace-setters of the Polish top flight.

Barry Douglas (Matthew Lewis)

Pablo Hernandez

As the Leeds supporters who made the pilgrimage to Spain to see him in action will know, Hernandez now turns out for Castellon in the third tier of Spanish football.

He is a shareholder in the club he represented during his youth and despite the fact he turns 37 in May, has made 13 appearances this season.

Oliver Casey

The Thorp Arch academy was handed his debut by Bielsa but with competition at centre-back stern, was allowed to sign a three-year contract with Championship side Blackpool in the summer of 2021.

However, he has yet to make an appearance for the Tangerines in the second tier and both of his appearances for the club have come in the Carabao Cup.

Rafa Mujica

The former Barcelona forward came and went at Elland Road without making a single competitive appearance.

He joined Las Palmas in the Spanish second tier last summer after spending time on loan at the club but has been used sparingly since penning a permanent deal.

Niall Huggins

Huggins made a promising start to life in League One with Sunderland but a back injury has left him sidelined and he has not made an appearance for the Black Cats since September.

Robbie Gotts

The versatile Gotts dropped into League Two with Barrow last summer and has become a mainstay in midfield for the Bluebirds alongside former Leeds teammate Jordan Stevens.

Jordan Stevens

Stevens also swapped Leeds for Barrow and has found the regular first-team football he was not getting at Elland Road.

He has made 22 appearances in all competitions, scoring four goals.

Bryce Hosannah

Before the arrival of Cody Drameh, it seemed as if Hosannah was emerging as the long-term successor to Luke Ayling at right-back.

However, injuries and the signing of Drameh left the former Crystal Palace prospect surplus to requirements and he joined Wrexham of the National League last summer.

He has made 15 appearances in the fifth tier for a club owned by a company which is led by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.

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