Phil Hay has revealed that Leeds United are set to see their academy promoted to Category One status by the Premier League.
Leeds have always had a strong production line coming through into their first-team and currently, Kalvin Phillips, is the star of the show at Elland Road.
Other players like Jamie Shackleton and Robbie Gotts join him in the first-team, with Marcelo Bielsa able to lean heavily on the quality Leeds produce when it comes to padding out his first-team.
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A report from The Athletic journalist Phil Hay has revealed that Leeds’ academy is now set to be rewarded for its impressive work, with Category One status awaiting and a pathway to joining the top-tier of youth development.
Within the report it reveals that Leeds’ academy promotion would mean they qualify for the Leasing.com Trophy, whilst they could also compete in European competitions.
Since Andrea Radrizzani arrived at Leeds as owner there has been a heavy focus on bolstering the academy at Elland Road, with a number of players arriving into the youth set-up from elsewhere including Leif Davis, Jordan Stevens and Pascal Struijk.
They have featured alongside the likes of Shackleton and Phillips on occasion in the first-team, but are yet to full establish themselves under Bielsa, despite the Argentine leaning heavily on the club’s academy since his appointment at the club.
The Verdict
This is great news for Leeds United Football Club and it is something they have been working towards since Radrizzani took control of the club back in 2017.
The emphasis on bringing their own players through the academy has been a regular theme at Leeds for some time, but since Bielsa arrived as head-coach it has been ultra important to continue that given his reliance on filling his squad with academy players.
A promotion for the academy opens up so many doors for the club and, should they win promotion to the Premier League this season in the Championship, it combines two extremely positive outcomes.
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