49ers investor Larry Nance Jr expected Wilfried Gnonto to leave Leeds United during summer transfer window
49ers investor and part Leeds owner Larry Nance Jr has admitted he expected Wilfried Gnonto to leave the club during the summer window.
Nance Jr was part of the investment group that took over at Elland Road this summer and has become a vocal part of the Leeds fan base in recent months.
And while appearing on the Leeds, That podcast (13 September), the former NBA star admitted that he was surprised that more people didn’t leave the club during the transfer window and especially that the club retained winger Gnonto.
“Truth be told, I thought more would go,” he said.
“For sure, I thought Gnonto was gone. I thought he would have been the first one out of the door.
“An Italy international at 19 is nothing to scoff at.”
Same
You’ll be hard pressed to find a Leeds fan who was genuinely confident that 19-year-old Gnonto would really be part of the squad this season the whole way through the summer.
From the initial interest from clubs, to his written formal transfer request, to refusing to play and train, there were a lot of different folds to this saga.
But ultimately Leeds stuck to their guns and made it clear they wouldn’t be selling Gnonto during the summer window, and he is now a key member of Daniel Farke’s squad to try and gain promotion back to the Premier League.
But for an investor in the club to admit that he expected the player to leave too shows just how close a deal likely was, but also how much the 49ers had to dig their heels in to keep him.
It’s great to show that we won’t be bullied in the market no matter what happens, but we’ve kept a fantastic player at the club and now the hope is that he can get us back to the Premier League and repay that faith we’ve shown in him.
In other Leeds news, international media frustrated by ‘6/10’ Whites ace after what he did on Tuesday.