Leeds have recently been linked with the loan signing of Chelsea full-back Reece James in January - as per, Football Insider.

James spent last season on-loan at Wigan Athletic where he impressed massively, helping them to Championship survival with strong performances at both ends of the pitch.

Leeds have come into this season off the back of a contrasting season to the Latics, having only narrowly missed out on promotion to the Premier League. They started this season much like the last, with a very thin squad, but a strong starting eleven, something much akin to all of the sides managed by Bielsa throughout his career.

This posed significant problems for Leeds last season as the Whites could never field a fully-fit squad all season due to constant long-term injuries to key players. This season has not been as traumatic yet, with only a handful of injuries so far and Liam Cooper’s six-week injury against West Brom at the start of the month being the most notable one so far.

Most Championship squads are testing to the limits over a 46-game season with injuries and suspensions piling up as the strain begins to take its toll on the players, which is why adding strength in depth is an absolute necessity to achieving your goals.  

James would be looking to take up the right-back slot at Elland Road, competing with Luke Ayling. In Ayling’s absence, Stuart Dallas has stepped up with consistent performances leading to many believing that he has been Leeds' best player this season, despite being out of position.

With Leeds’ squad depth being an issue, we take a look at how Reece James could remedy this in January…

Last season, James only missed one Championship game and played the whole match in the vast majority of the other 45 games. The Chelsea-loanee was a star for Wigan, scooping up three awards at the club’s end of season party.

In that time, the right-back impressed from dead-ball situations, scoring three goals and registering four assists, one of his goals coming against potential suitors Leeds. James’ attacking ability caught the eye for Wigan with many believing he easily had the ability to make it at Chelsea following the end of his loan.

Over the season, James averaged 73.5% passing accuracy, which is a great statistic for a player so often distributing the ball into crowded spaces from set-pieces and open play.

James impressed defensively too. With Wigan needing strong defensive performances to survive the drop, the full-back averaged 4.55 interceptions per game and won 68.3% of his defensive duels, showing he is efficient in dispossessing his opponents.

James has shone in the Championship and especially against Leeds where he put in marvellous performances at the DW Stadium, as well as part of a titanic defensive display from Wigan when they stunned Leeds at Elland Road to win 2-1 late in the season.