Leeds can fix winger woes by unleashing 18-year-old who’s “like Grealish”

Leeds United failed to do what they set out to do on the deadline day of the summer transfer window, as they were ultimately unable to bring in any new signings.

Speaking ahead of the deadline, Daniel Farke said: “In defence and midfield, goalkeeper position and full-back position, we’ve done really good business. But we spoke quite open and honest about it, we would need to add some more quality up front. We need to stay awake until the last hour of this window.”

Their head coach was clear in his assessment that the squad needed more quality added to it in the attacking positions, but the board failed to land any of their targets.

Journalist Ben Jacobs revealed that the club came close to sealing a deal to sign Harry Wilson on a permanent transfer from Fulham, only for their Premier League rivals to pull the plug at the last minute.

The Wales international scored six goals in the Premier League last season, per Sofascore, and could have been a strong addition to the squad on the right flank.

Now, unless Leeds decide to dip into the free agent market, Farke will have to attack the top-flight with the tools that he currently has at his disposal, until January at least.

Why Leeds need more attacking quality

As Farke said, the Championship champions needed, and still need, more quality at the top end of the pitch, and their start to the season has highlighted that.

The Whites have only scored one goal in their first three matches in the Premier League, a penalty against Everton, and are yet to score a goal from open play in the division.

Leeds created four ‘big chances’ in those three outings. Three of them came in the 1-0 win over Everton and one of them was the penalty converted by Nmecha in that clash.

This shows that Farke’s side have struggled to create as well as to score at the start of this season, which may be why he was so insistent on reinforcements coming through the door.

As you can see in the table above, Leeds are not particularly well-stocked on the quality front in the attacking positions, when you consider who is filling those slots.

Per Sofascore, Calvert-Lewin and Nmecha scored three league goals each last season, whilst Noah Okafor and Jack Harrison both scored one goal from the wing. In the 2022/23 Premier League season, James and Gnonto both scored two goals each, and Aaronson struck once. This is the first season back in the division for all three of them.

These statistics do not suggest that the Whites are going to be free-scoring in the Premier League this season, given that the seven attackers they have who have played in a major European league combined for 13 goals in their last top-flight campaigns.

This is why Farke must look for creative solutions to that problem, and one possible way to solve the team’s attacking woes could be to unleash 18-year-old academy talent Sam Chambers.

The Scottish youngster was handed his first-team debut by Farke in the 2024/25 campaign, playing in the FA Cup and the Championship, and could provide something different at the top end of the pitch for Leeds.

Why Leeds should unleash Sam Chambers

It may seem like a stretch to suggest that an 18-year-old talent should be thrown in at the deep end to play Premier League football in the hope that he can help the team to avoid relegation.

However, Farke has proven in the past that he is willing to throw academy players into situations, Archie Gray being the main example during his time at Elland Road.

Todd Cantwell is, perhaps, a more relevant example in this instance, though. The English attacker started off his career as an attacking midfielder and only scored one senior goal before the 2019/20 Premier League campaign.

Farke did not get the attacking signings needed at Carrow Road for that season and opted to move Cantwell out to the left wing, as a nimble and technically gifted playmaker who could cut inside, and it was a genius move, as the forward went on to score six goals and provide two assists, per Sofascore.

Chambers could follow a similar path as he has mainly played as an attacking midfielder in his youth career, but the teen talent has also been compared to Jack Grealish, Emile Smith Rowe, and Tyler Dibling, who have played wide attacking midfield roles, like Cantwell did under Farke.

Speaking to the YEP, SCOUTED editor Llew Davies hailed Chambers: “Shown some top ability to slide past players from deeper areas with smooth changes of direction and tempo. [He] breaks open games, beats presses, creates positive attacking situations. Suck-push style of dribbling, little bit [like Jack] Grealish, Emile Smith Rowe and [Tyler] Dibling.”

It is not hard to see that comparison to Grealish when you consider the little he was able to show on the pitch for the first-team in his Championship debut against Plymouth last term.

Chambers came on at right-wing and attempted two take-ons and completed three carries in just 17 minutes, per FBref, showing a willingness to drive forward with the ball at his feet, using his close-control and imagination in possession.

In the last 365 days, Grealish has attempted 4.02 take-ons per 90, as per FBref, and the Leeds teen managed half as many in just 17 minutes in the Championship, which speaks to the style of winger he could be.

As a natural number ten, Chambers can bring invention and a willingness to drive forward out wide by playing on the right wing, a positional change that Dibling, Grealish, Cantwell, and Smith Rowe all went through as they emerged as Premier League-grade talents at the time.

The Scotland youth international has only scored four goals in 43 U18 and U21 games for Leeds, per Transfermarkt, but Grealish only scored six goals in 43 games for Aston Villa’s reserves before his Premier League breakthrough.

As a player whose natural game is to drive with the ball and to be creative in tight situations and in big spaces in transition, Chambers could come into the team to be the creative spark that Leeds have lacked so far this season.

That could, in turn, help the other forwards in the team to increase their output in front of goal by putting them in better positions to be effective in the final third, which is why Farke must consider unleashing Chambers as wildcard option on the right-wing.