Dan James is set to return to Leeds United this summer, with the club said to be keen to keep him to help steer them back to the Premier League.
A big-money signing from Manchester United in 2021, the Welsh winger has yet to show his true potential at Elland Road and was sent on loan to Fulham last season by then-boss Jesse Marsch. And while James didn't ever show his truly best form, he still managed three goals in 23 appearances for a Cottagers side that finished tenth, in comparison to Leeds who were relegated.
This week his Wales boss Rob Page tipped him to be a Premier League player still, saying if he was a top-flight boss he'd be looking to sign the 25-year-old this summer. However, noises out of the Leeds camp suggest that the Whites will do all they can to keep James, and, as the search for a new manager goes on, there are two particular candidates who stand out as having the tools to get the best out of James.
The first is rather obvious. Graham Potter is already very familiar with James and his potential, having managed him at Swansea City. In fact, James has even previously credited the former Brighton and Chelsea boss with saving his career after an early crisis in confidence.
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Speaking after joining Manchester United, James said of Potter: "I think it was the down point in my career. I went to Shrewsbury on loan, I came back within a month and hadn't played a game - injured and feeling sorry for myself really.
"I didn't think I was going to make it as a footballer. Obviously you had people behind you saying 'You've got the chance', but within myself - going on loan, not playing and coming back, I really didn't think this was for me. I think I had 10 games that season altogether, with injuries as well.
"Coming back the next season was the same. I wanted to go back on loan but the gaffer who was there at the time (Potter) - he's at Brighton now - said to me 'I feel like you've got a big chance to play here'. Coming out of that meeting, obviously I was delighted but was he just saying that to be nice? He really put the confidence back into me to play."
Potter, meanwhile, praised James a lot throughout their brief time together in South Wales. In one particularly glowing appraisal, Potter said of the pacey wide man: "He's a great lad, his sprinting ability is sensational, he's so brave and he'll get better and better with his final ball and execution.
"I can see Dan’s qualities there. His pace is incredible. Then his ability to reproduce that pace often is of such a high level. Then he has got that courage and resilience that people don’t see so much. He gets kicked all over the place but gets back up again. But, when you know the person, Dan is an incredible lad. Such resilience, such personality, character. He does his work for the team.”
Knowing he's returning to Leeds this summer, James is likely to be keeping a close eye on developments as the search for Sam Allardyce's successor continues. James would no doubt love the opportunity to work again with Potter, though recent reports suggest that it will be unlikely, with the former Chelsea boss said to be seen as unattainable at this time.
But there is a second candidate who could also help unlock James' true potential at Elland Road, and that is German coach Daniel Farke - another available manager who is familiar with the Welshman.
Though the pair have never worked together, that wasn't for the want of trying on Farke's part. The former Norwich City boss has previously admitted that he tried to take James to Carrow Road before his move to Manchester United, admitting his admiration for James.
Speaking previously about that, Farke said: "I’m not surprised by how good James has been. I always liked him, but sadly there was no chance for us to get him when Man United called! To deliver that quickly on this level says a lot about his character.”
With an expansive style compared to Marcelo Bielsa's, Farke's arrival at Elland Road could see James given the freedom to express himself in the Championship next season to help steer Leeds back to the Premier League.
