Leeds United thumped Oxford United 4-0 at Elland Road in the Championship on Saturday to ensure that they get to enjoy being in the automatic promotion places on Christmas day.
The Whites are still three points behind Sheffield United at the top of the table, but are in a fantastic position to go and attack the second half of the season.
Daniel Farke’s side secured all three points thanks to goals from Manor Solomon, Jayden Bogle, Dan James, and Brenden Aaronson, winning comfortably without any of their strikers getting on the scoresheet.
Impressively, Leeds are the top scorers in the Championship (41) without having a centre-forward who has consistently found the back of the net.
The form of Leeds United’s strikers this season
The Whites have not had a striker who has nailed down a place in the team by scoring week-in-week-out to carry the side at times, with Farke having to rely on goals from elsewhere – as was the case on Saturday.
Joel Piroe has started the most games as the club’s main centre-forward, with 13 starts in 22 matches, and has scored seven goals in the second tier.
|
24/25 Championship |
Appearances |
xG |
Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Joel Piroe |
22 |
6.51 |
7 |
|
Mateo Joseph |
22 |
4.32 |
2 |
|
Patrick Bamford |
8 |
1.49 |
0 |
|
Total |
52 |
12.32 |
9 |
|
Stats via WhoScored |
|||
As you can see in the table above, Farke’s three number nine options have combined for just nine goals from 12.32 xG, which suggests that his forwards have not been clinical enough in front of goal.
Therefore, the 49ers could gift the German head coach a perfect Christmas present by swooping for Brighton & Hove Albion forward Evan Ferguson this winter, amid reported interest in the Irishman from Leeds.
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The Premier League side are reportedly willing to send the 20-year-old marksman out on loan, which has opened the door for the Whites to potentially make a move for his services.
Why Evan Ferguson would be perfect for Farke
The Ireland international joining on loan would be a perfect Christmas gift for the German head coach because his form for Brighton in recent seasons suggests that he would bring exactly what the manager has been missing.
Leeds create plenty of high-quality chances for their strikers, as shown by the aforementioned statistics, but – as a collective – they have failed to make the most of that, which may be why the Whites find themselves in second rather than first.
Ferguson has scored 13 goals from 10.29 xG in the Premier League for Brighton in his career to date, including six goals from 3.97 xG in the top-flight last term.
The Seagulls youngster, who was once described as “incredibly prolific” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, is a lethal finisher but has not been able to break into the team on a regular basis in the Premier League this term, after an ankle injury caused him to miss all of pre-season – from April to August.
Leeds could offer Ferguson, who scored 18 goals in 39 games for Brighton at U21 level, a chance to play regular football to get his season back on track after a disrupted start due to injury.
His impressive level of finishing at a higher level, in the Premier League, suggests that he would come in as the perfect centre-forward to solve Farke’s number nine issue, as the Irishman could make the most of the high-quality chances that his team creates.
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It is now up to the 49ers to do whatever they can to get a deal over the line for Ferguson ahead of the January transfer window, which opens next week.
