Leeds United must resist temptation to give Brenden Aaronson second chance at Elland Road
The promising position Leeds United find themselves in during the second international break does not mean there any short memories at Elland Road.
Last season was a disaster on the pitch and ended in the most inevitable of relegations from the Premier League, while things off it weren’t much better in truth.
A change in the boardroom with the arrival of 49ers Enterprises brought optimism, as did the appointment of Daniel Farke – a manager who has twice been promoted from the Championship, playing a swashbuckling style of football.
But there were several names who showed they lack the backbone to fight the club, albeit they were presented with the opportunity to do so after the previous regime inserted baffling clauses into certain players’ contracts allowing them to leave the club on loan in the case of relegation.
Among those was United States attacking midfielder Brenden Aaronson, who departed Elland Road for a loan move to Bundesliga outfit Union Berlin.
According to Dean Jones, who was speaking to GiveMeSport (11 October), there is a feeling that both Aaronson and Leeds might be open to the idea of having a second crack at things if Leeds can get back to the top flight.
“If Leeds get back to the Premier League, I do expect Aaronson to be back in the fold,” said Jones. “He still wants to cut it in the Premier League, and I think they’d have to give him another chance.
“There are plenty of times where players have had a second crack of the whip, and they have figured things out. It’s a big if, though, at the moment, because there is still such a long way to go.
“Leeds are obviously being mentioned in line with promotion, but we all know there are dips that come across the course of a Championship season. It’s all going to be about how they come through those moments.”
But it is a scenario Leeds should avoid. The obvious point being that Aaronson jumped ship the first chance he got instead of fighting for the club and the shirt and doing his bit to help fix the mess he was a part of.
However, it is also the fact he just hasn’t been performing in the Bundesliga. In stats provided by SofaScore, the attacking midfielder is yet to score or assist in Germany’s top flight and has an average rating of 5.94 – albeit this was not helped by a 3.5 rating against Darmstadt on August 26 – where he was sent off after just 21 minutes in a 4-1 win.
His expected goals is a meagre 0.13, he averages 0.4 shots per game, has created just one big chance, has an expected assists rate of 0.39, and averages 0.6 key passes per 90.
Frankly, it is not just the fact he walked away at a time of need, Aarsonon just isn’t performing well enough on the pitch.
It all points to one conclusion. Leeds must resist the temptation to give him a second chance at Elland Road.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites are rivalling a Champions League side for a Swedish starlet.