Leeds United have been completely rocked by the latest Georginio Rutter news.
After a humiliating 3-0 defeat at home to Middlesbrough in the Carabao Cup, news broke that Brighton & Hove Albion had activated Rutter’s £40m buyout clause.
Bids of £29m and £35m were reportedly rejected for Brighton, but they met the demands of Rutter’s release clause before Leeds struck with Boro.
With Leeds having already lost first-team players Archie Gray, Crysencia Summerville and Glen Kamara, seeing Rutter leave would be an incredibly bitter pill to swallow.
Leeds have already been in the market for three new signings in the last two weeks of the window, but Rutter’s exit would make it four. It is difficult to imagine how they can all be adequately replaced.
What Leeds asks Rutter backstage
It is said that Rutter was actually aware of Brighton’s offer before last night’s game with Leeds, but he made himself available for the game anyway, coming off the bench in the second half.
Rutter has never pushed for a move behind the scenes and now faces a big decision to stay or return to the Premier League.
Leeds have already raised just £100m this summer through player sales (including Luis Sinisterra) and it’s clearly an exit they don’t need financially.
As such, as reported by Leeds Live, the club are said to be practically “begging” Rutter to stay, but in the end the ball is in his court.
The report also claims that a new deal is off the table if Rutter decides to stay, despite having four years left on his current contract.
Surely Rutter will need a quick decision for all parties, because if he does leave Leeds would have a serious task of replacing him at such short notice.
Rutter’s exit would be the worst
Losing Summerville and Gray in the same window is bad enough, but Rutter would undoubtedly be the worst.
Rutter went from nothing to hero this past season, building a rapport with the fans that few can with his performances and personality off the field.
While Rutter’s possession can be a source of frustration, there simply isn’t anyone Leeds can bring in to replace what he brings.
His ability to break past defenders and create chances makes him one of the best players in the league. An offense without him or Summerville probably would have eliminated the top two by now.