The club have made a move to bolster the squad by signing 34-year-old Josuha Guilavogui, who can operate in a number of defensive positions. Subject to obtaining a work permit, he will now be with us until the end of the current season.
Between transfer windows we can only sign players who are out of contract, and Daniel Farke has previously indicated that he would be reluctant to enter this market, perhaps on the basis that players might be out of contract for good reason. But needs must, and with the team picking up a number of injuries in the same area of the squad the club have decided to make a move to ensure we have another option to call on.
Guilavogui can play in midfield or in defence, and he has won seven full international caps for France, as well as having played in the top division in three of Europe’s top leagues. He started out with Saint Etienne, and has since represented Atletico Madrid, VfL Wolfsburg, Bordeaux and Mainz 05. Leeds are hoping to get his international clearance and other paperwork completed in time for him to be eligible for the Bristol City game on Saturday.
It's probable that he will be on the bench for that game due to an inevitable lack of match fitness, but if he is to get on the field at some point the most likely position is as a defensive midfielder, in the continued absence of both Ampadu and Gruev. Rothwell and Tanaka have worked hard, but on Tuesday the limitations of playing the pair in that unfamiliar role were starting to show.
But we also might need him in central defence at some point, if Rodon or Struijk get injured or pick up sufficient bookings before Wöber is ready to come back. And the player was sounding well up for it when he took to Twitter earlier today.
"Not everyone gets the chance to wear the jersey of a legendary club like Leeds United. It’s now up to me to give my best and pay tribute to all those who wore this jersey before me. It’s both an honour and a tremendous responsibility”. And he added to that when he spoke to the official Leeds United website.
"I have never played in England and I think as a football player this is a really amazing experience and for playing for Leeds, a historic club, this is a wonderful opportunity for me. I am looking forward to training with the team, to help the team on the pitch, outside the pitch as well and hopefully that we set our goals.”
"I had some offers, but nothing that I would say, okay, let’s do it. And when my agent called me and said that Daniel has interest to sign me and watched over me, I said, yeah, let’s go straight, straight to Leeds. Sometimes in life you have some opportunities you don’t want to miss. When I spoke with our manager, he knows what I can bring on the pitch and also outside the pitch, because we don’t forget that we have injured players and I am there to help them”.
"And when they will recover, I will also help the young players. That is why I was captain, like everywhere where I played, because I am someone that is always thinking about how can I make my teammates better, how can I improve. I am here for helping the team and I really hope that we will go to the Premier League”.
At the age of 34 his best days on the field must be behind him, so the best we can hope for is that he can do a job for us filling in when need be. But his comments sound interesting, as it looks like he’s got an eye on a coaching career in the future, so maybe his time with us will extend beyond the end of this season and his current contract.