Leeds United have some important decisions to make on the contract front over the next month or so.
With Stuart Dallas having confirmed his retirement last month, and Luke Ayling’s move to Middlesbrough already confirmed, there are now six players whose deals are expiring this summer, all of whom appeared for Leeds’ first team at some point over the course of the season.
Liam Cooper is arguably the most high-profile name on the list, having just finished his 10th year at the club following a £600k arrival from Chesterfield in 2014.
Cooper has already all but confirmed he will be departing his boyhood club this summer, and the fact he received such a rapturous reception when he entered the field against Norwich City at Elland Road, means all the signs are there.
Sam Byram and Jamie Shackleton, who both encountered a number of injury issues over the course of the season, are also out of contract next month.
Ian Poveda, Lewis Bate and Cody Drameh, meanwhile, all spent either the full, or half a season out on loan, and have almost certainly played their last games for the club.
Why Sam Byram is the only out of contract Leeds player who deserves deal
From that list, it would not be a surprise, or major concern, if all of those players were actually released by Leeds this summer.
Though Cooper is, and has been a fantastic captain, his impact on the pitch is not what it once was. At 32, this could be his last chance to earn a decent contract and go play regularly somewhere.
Leeds clearly don’t feel they require the services of Poveda, Bate or Drameh anymore, while the frequent unavailability of both Byram and Shackleton is an issue.
However, if there is one player most deserving of a new deal, it would be Byram. Upon signing a one-year-deal last summer, everyone knew that he was arriving with fitness issues.
To get 37 appearances out of him across all competitions, though, would suggest he contributed more than enough, particularly when Junior Firpo was sat on the sidelines in the first half of the season. Daniel Farke even labelled him as ‘outstanding’ and one of Leeds’ best ever free transfers.
The 30-year-old is a good solid player at this level and with the amount of experience Leeds are losing this summer, it would be a waste to give up on Byram’s so easily.
As such, Leeds should look to hand him another one-year-deal, but take the pressure off the amount he needs to be play by making him third choice full-back on both flanks.
That way, Byram would only be required whenever Leeds are in somewhat of an injury crisis, which should in turn allow him to be available more often.
What has Byram said on the prospect of a new deal?
Byram last spoke about the prospect of signing a new deal all the way back in January, just as the injury issues had started to bite for him.
However, he couldn’t have made it any clearer what he would like to do, as he claimed that he would absolutely ‘love’ to stay at Elland Road even longer.
“I’d love to [stay here longer]. “Me and my partner are very settled. It’s home, family and friends. A huge club. I’d love to stay, you can never guess the future. Just got to keep playing and see what happens.”