Leeds United made minimal changes to their playing squad throughout the recent January transfer window, as they prepared for the second half of the 2023/24 campaign.
Connor Roberts was brought in on loan from Premier League side Burnley on deadline day to bolster Daniel Farke's options in the full-back positions.
That move came after Djed Spence was sent back to Tottenham Hotspur, halfway through his season-long loan, and Luke Ayling was sent out on loan to Middlesbrough.
Leo Hjelde was sold to Sunderland on a permanent deal, and Darko Gyabi and Ian Poveda were both allowed to join Plymouth Argyle and Sheffield Wednesday on loan respectively.
Farke allowed Ayling, Poveda, Gyabi, and Hjelde to depart as they did not feature regularly for the first-team and their respective transfers allowed them to go and play football week-in-week-out at other Championship teams.
Charlie Cresswell, however, was not afforded that same luxury as the central defender, who has not featured regularly this season, was not allowed to leave in January.
European interest in Charlie Cresswell
According to The Sunday People [24 March, page 55], via MOTLeedsNews, teams in Italy have started to pay attention to the Championship as they believe that there is underrated value in the talent on offer in the division.
The report states that Serie A side Lazio were interested in a deal to sign former Leeds starlet Jack Clarke, who is currently playing for Sunderland. They were also eyeing up Plymouth's Morgan Whittaker, Sunderland's Jobe Bellingham, and Norwich City's Jonathan Rowe.
Atalanta also attempted to sign Jordan James from Birmingham City, but failed, and Inter were keen on Bristol City star Alex Scott before his move to Bournemouth last summer.
The Sunday People also claim that Milan made a £6m offer to sign Andrew Omobamidele from Norwich before his transfer to Nottingham Forest on deadline day in the 2023 summer transfer window.
It also states that Milan, who won the Scudetto as recently as 2022, emerged as contenders to sign Cresswell from Leeds during the recent January transfer window.
The Rossoneri made a deadline day bid to snap up the England U21 international from Elland Road, although the report does not reveal how much they offered.
Ultimately, for reasons The Sunday People do not disclose, Leeds turned down the offer from Milan and decided to keep hold of the central defender for the second half of the campaign.
They may look back on that decision as a blunder as the English youngster is far down the pecking order in Yorkshire, and there is little sign of that changing any time soon.
Leeds should have cashed in on the towering defender due to his lack of minutes on the pitch this season, with less game time than Joe Gelhardt in the Championship.
Joe Gelhardt's season in numbers
The former Wigan prospect, who spent the second half of last season on loan with Sunderland, was once a promising young player who made the breakthrough at Premier League level for the Whites.
Gelhardt produced two goals and six assists in 35 top-flight appearances across the 2021/22 and 2022/23 campaigns, which may have led some to hope that he would be able to thrive at a lower level in the Championship.
The 21-year-old whiz, who produced three goals and three assists in 18 matches for the Black Cats last term, returned to Thorp Arch last summer after the club's relegation from the Premier League and might have hoped to finally establish himself as a regular starter for the first-team.
Appearances
8
Starts
2
Goals
0
xG
0.51
Assists
0
Instead, as you can see in the table above, Gelhardt has only managed eight appearances and two league starts – with zero goals or assists – for the Whites by March.
The left-footed attacker did, however, score one goal in two League Cup outings and played 49 minutes in the FA Cup against Plymouth last month.
Overall, the former England U20 international has played 372 minutes across all competitions for Leeds this season, with a return of one goal and zero assists in 11 games.
As aforementioned, though, he is not the only outcast in the Leeds squad as Cresswell has had fewer minutes on the pitch than Gelhardt at club level.
Charlie Cresswell's season in numbers
Much like the forward, the England U21 international may have felt that he could fight for his place in the starting XI after a successful season out on loan last term.
Cresswell won 60% of his defensive duels across 29 Championship appearances on loan with Millwall throughout the 2022/23 campaign, as he gained valuable first-team experience on a regular basis.
The 21-year-old brute has not forced his way into Farke's plans, unfortunately, as Pascal Struijk, Ethan Ampadu, Liam Cooper, and Joe Rodon have all played more minutes.
He has been on the pitch for just 313 minutes – 59 minutes less than Gelhardt – across seven appearances for the Whites in all competitions this season, with five outings in the second tier and two in the League Cup.
Ampadu, 23, Struijk, 24, and Rodon, 26, are all relatively young, and it does not seem likely that he is going to leapfrog them in the pecking order, given Farke's trust in them over the Leeds academy graduate this term.
Therefore, the German head coach should have allowed the centre-back to sign for Milan, or another club if there were other interested parties, during the Januay transfer window.
Appearances
5
Starts
1
Pass accuracy
88%
Duel success rate
70%
Error led to a shot or goal
0
As you can see in the table above, Cresswell has not been given many opportunities to showcase his quality in the Championship this season, with just one start to his name.
He has not been provided with a real chance to stake a claim for his position and the respective ages of the players ahead of him in his position suggest that will not change, barring multiple injuries or suspensions.
This is why, as aforementioned, Leeds should have cashed in on him when Milan came knocking. The Whites would have raked in a fee for his services, that they could have reinvested in other positions, and Cresswell would have joined a legendary club with a possible chance to play in a major European league.
Instead, the 6 foot 3 titan appears set to go through the 2023/24 campaign without playing regular first-team football at any point, which is a shame for a young player looking to develop his game.