Breaking: Former Leeds United teammate intensifies rumors of Junior Firpo’s departure to Real Betis…

23/07/2024 Emmanuel Football 0

The White full-back has been tipped to depart Elland Road on a potential loan move which is embedded in his contract

Leeds United star Junior Firpo has been heavily linked with an exit away from Elland Road this summer and one of his former teammates has already called on his team to join him on the European continent.

According to Spanish outlet ABC, the left-back has a clause in his current contract that allows him to leave the club on loan to a team of his choice following the club’s failure to win promotion back to the Premier League last season after their 1-0 loss to Southampton in the Playoff final at Wembley.

It’s claimed that La Liga club Real Betis are set to sign yet another Leeds star this summer in Firpo, with reports suggesting that talks have already opened about a possible departure in the coming weeks for the Dominican Republic international. It’s believed that discussions between the two clubs around a potential deal for Firpo are said to have taken place during talks for his former teammates Marc Roca and Diego Llorente, both of whom joined Betis earlier in the window.

It seems clear that Leeds won’t get back the £12.8million they spent on Firpo when signing him from Barcelona back in 2021 despite the star having been a vital part of manager Daniel Farke’s squad over the last 12 months after his eight assists in 33 appearances helped bring the Whites to within one match of promotion.

While he’s currently the only recognised left-back on United’s books, an exit to Betis for Firpo cannot be ruled out after Llorente himself highlighted his relationship with the star in a recent interview.

After his own four-year spell at Leeds United came to an end following an 18-month loan spell at AS Roma before completing his permanent move to Betis earlier this month, Llorente was asked if he’d recommended Firpo to Betis following Leeds’ failed promotion. He said: “I was sad that they didn’t get promoted because they were very close to returning to the Premier League.

“Beyond that I can only have good things to say about him. We all know him and we know what Junior is capable of. Going away has made him improve, it makes you stronger. The experience in the Premier League clearly enriches you. It makes you improve day by day. It is another type of training. Physically you have to deal with stronger and faster players but you adapt. In all matches you must have a very high level of alertness.

“You learn a lot from these leagues, as has also happened to me in Italy. I have evolved. Now I have to adapt to the Spanish league again because I have been away for four years, but with experience I feel that I have improved.”