Leeds United to lose hugely-respected player after Archie Gray transfer to Tottenham
Liam Cooper is now expected to leave Leeds United after failing to agree an extension to his Elland Road contract, according to TEAMtalk.
In a report on the outlet’s website on 3 July sources have apparently indicated that the long-serving club captain is not expected to sign a new deal, despite having the offer of another year on the table.
The “hugely-respected” 32-year-old is said to want two years but the Whites are reluctant to commit for longer as they retain hopes of gaining Premier League promotion next season.
Cooper’s involvement under Daniel Farke was sparing last term as the likes of Pascal Struijk, loanee Joe Rodon, who has now re-signed permanently from Tottenham, and Ethan Ampadu all preferred to the Scotland international.
As such he was headed to the exit as his contract ticked down until the disappointing end to a sparkling campaign saw Leeds United miss out on promotion and a “change of heart” ensued at Elland Road.
However, the two sides have since reached an “impasse” over the length of a new deal and the centre-back is now set to leave anyway.
Liam Cooper to leave Leeds United after decade at Elland Road
Since an extension was offered it will be another disappointment for the club to see Cooper leave, but it will surely pale in significance to losing Archie Gray in a big-money transfer to Tottenham.
Had Farke managed to take the club back to the Premier League this would likely have happened anyway, with the captain rarely required on the pitch last term and the Whites careers of fellow veterans Luke Ayling, now at Middlesbrough, and Stuart Dallas, now retired, also ending.
Losing Cooper’s influence in the dressing room will likely be felt more strongly that his contributions on the pitch, and that perhaps can’t be underestimated with a relatively young squad.
But with the return of Rodon there will surely be hopes that the Welshman can join the likes of international teammate Ampadu in picking up such responsibilities.
In many ways it was surprising that Cooper remained ahead of Charlie Cresswell in the pecking order at centre-back last season when it seemed the time for the youngster, who had been seen as the heir apparent to the skipper within the club previously, to step up after his loan at Millwall.
The 21-year-old was expected to complete permanent transfer to Toulouse while the club attempted to Cooper the veteran, but with the former’s exit having now collapsed [Graham Smyth, 1 July] and the latter’s return apparently unworkable it remains to be seen whether the club’s thinking on the pair might now switch.
