Two seasons ago, Leeds United dropped down from the Premier League after coming 19th overall. Whilst last season, The Whites had a strong showing in the Championship, their third-place finish had them fall short of automatic promotion by six points.
In the promotion play-offs, Leeds managed a 4-0 win over Norwich but then fell short, being defeated by Southampton 1-0 to see the Saints gain promotion and Leeds have to battle it out in the Championship for another year.
To try and avoid a last-stage disappointment again, Leeds have turned to Belgian winger Largie Ramazani to provide some more firepower on the attack.
Ramazani arrived at Leeds this summer from UD Almeria for £6.5 million (€7.7 million), however before joining Almeria on a free transfer, the winger was a product of the Manchester United academy.
Whilst the left winger was a key member of the Almeria squad across LaLiga and LaLiga 2, getting 22 goals and nine assists in 128 games, winning the LaLiga 2 in 2021/22, Ramazani only made one solitary appearance for the Red Devils senior squad before moving to Spain.
His debut and last United appearance came in the Europa League group stage in 2019 against FC Astana, when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was trying out some of his younger stars like Angel Gomes and D’Mani Mellor. However, the game ultimately went against United, with Astana winning 2-1.
However, speaking to BBC Radio Leeds’ West Yorkshire Sport Daily programme, Ramazani spoke about his reasons for leaving United, saying: “I just wanted experience, I wanted first-team football.”
He continued: “I wasn’t getting that at (Manchester) United, so I thought ‘I’m just going to take the risk’, go to a second division team in Spain and just make my way out.
“I’m confident in my qualities and I know I’m going to make it out, so I just decided to take the risk and show myself out there.
“We managed to get promotion in the second season and yeah, it was a great feeling.”
Ultimately it seems like rejecting a contract and moving on a free transfer was a good move for the 23-year-old, with his extensive game time having helped him develop over the last few seasons.
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