Leeds United need to be bold and sell Charlie Taylor in January

Charlie Taylor is a fantastic player and a top quality attacking full-back. In my opinion, he is actually the best player we currently have within the squad, Wood, Jansson, Hernandez and Bartley included. However, I believe in the best interests of the club, Leeds United need to make the bold decision and sell Charlie Taylor to the highest bidder in January.

As Leeds fans, we hope to see the mighty Whites back in the Premier League come next season, but to achieve this mighty task, we must build on what we currently have.

In essence, we need to strengthen the squad in multiple places in January, and to do this, we require funds. Last week, West Brom’s interest in Charlie was reported to come with a fee of around £5 million.

Without a doubt, £5 million goes a long way in the Championship and if we had someone to invest the £5 million accordingly, then promotion could become a definite possibility.

Leeds United would miss the quality of Taylor. However, he is only one player within the squad and I am a firm believer one player doesn’t make a team successful. A strong and interchangeable group of players make teams a success.

We all felt the departure of Lewis Cook was a step back for the club. However, five months later, the club is having the best season in five years. The obvious reason for this is the player recruitment done by Garry Monk and his team. Face the facts: the acquisitions made by the club would not have been possible if Leeds hadn’t agreed to the Lewis Cook sale.

The departure of Cook and everything that happened afterwards validates the point: losing one can benefit many.

Leeds need to look to strengthen both the attack and the defence. Currently, we have quality in these areas but I fear what might happen if Wood, Bartley or Jansson were missing for a substantial amount of time. We saw what happened when we lost Hernandez on Sunday.

We do have some depth, but is it quality enough to push for promotion? Furthermore, players who apply their trade in these positions do not come cheap... and £5 million would go a long way to funding them.

Well, we do have some quality players who play the full-back positions and while there’d be a dip in talent, several could easily play at left-back. I have seen the quality Luke Ayling possesses and I am sure he could make the transition to the other side of the pitch. Gaetano Berardi will come back some day (right??), and Tyler Denton had a memorable night a few months ago as well.

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Leeds could also look to bring in a replacement on a temporary basis. There are various options and players who would love the chance to gain experience by coming to Elland Road, and few would be as expensive as Charlie Taylor.

I am also a strong believer that if a player wants to leave the football club, then the club needs to allow them to leave. To be fair to Charlie Taylor, the transfer request hasn’t impacted his performance on the pitch, and it was put in before we saw what Monk’s Leeds could do, but he has shown the desire to leave and the allure of the Premier League will be ever-present in his mind.

We all hope to see Leeds back in the Premier League next season, but the reality is that the Championship is a harsh mistress. For us to achieve promotion to the promised land of England’s top division is uncertain, and I have to wonder if, even with our good start to the season, Taylor will be willing to take that risk.

On another note, some people ridicule the teams who are reportedly interested in signing Taylor, as if Leeds is a better place for him regardless. However, we all to have to remember that these are Premier League sides. Regardless of the size, history or worldwide status, that carries a lot of clout (as do the number of zeroes on the paychecks).

We all want Premier League football. But for Leeds United to pull that off in 2017, we need to gamble. The sale of Charlie Taylor is a huge gamble, but given the possible return, I believe this gamble could pay off for us in the long run.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below and on social media. MOT.