Leeds United have now tasted defeat in the Championship after Scott Parker’s Burnley defeated an out-of-sorts Whites side 1-0 on Saturday.
Luca Koleosho’s breakaway strike in the first half would end up being the difference maker for the Clarets, with Daniel Farke cutting a frustrated figure on the sidelines throughout, as his Leeds team dominated the ball but just couldn’t find the strike to catch James Trafford out.
Wilfried Gnonto notably underperformed for his side at Elland Road, as every attacker donning Leeds white on the day – including the lacklustre Italian – continually fired blanks.
Gnonto's performance vs Burnley
Gnonto wasn’t at the races whatsoever for his team, alongside his partner in crime down the opposing flank in Manor Solomon, who slipped over for Koleosho to race through unchallenged to score the winner.
The lively Leeds number 29 would only manage one effort on target at Trafford’s net in the back-and-forth contest, whilst also only managing to amass 22 accurate passes in the defeat, in a game that saw Burnley capitalise on the home team’s errors constantly.
Also squandering possession 16 times in the narrow loss, Gnonto will just want to put this game to one side in his head and power on ahead this campaign, to help Farke’s men in their bid to be in and around the promotion spots once more.
His German manager won’t just drop him completely after this poor showing either, knowing what he is capable of away from dropping the odd off-performance here and there, having helped himself to an opening day strike versus Portsmouth.
Patrick Bamford might not be so lucky moving forward himself, in terms of entering back into the starting XI, as another game has ended up passing the former England international owing to recurring injury concerns.
Bamford’s excessive wage will also be troubling those in West Yorkshire, with the injury-prone centre-forward currently raking in double Gnonto’s pay-packet, as per Capology.
Bamford's wage at Leeds
According to the website, Bamford’s wage for the 24/25 season comes in at an eye-watering £70k-per-week, making the Whites number nine the highest earner in the camp at this moment in time.
That’s the case despite the unlucky 31-year-old only being present this season for two league games, averaging a meagre 11 minutes on the turf too when introduced into the action, with no place at all for the ageing attacker on the substitutes bench versus Burnley.
These injury issues aren’t just exclusive to the infancy of this campaign either, with Bamford missing for large chunks of games in the past too, with 68 games missed in total during his Whites career just through injury.
Even when he has been deemed ready for action, he hasn’t exactly been a goal machine, with only two seasons donning a Leeds jersey resulting in him hitting double figures.
Player
Wage
League games played
1. Bamford
£70k-per-week
2
2. Junior Firpo
£60k-per-week
5
3. Manor Solomon
£60k-per-week
2
4. Pascal Struijk
£50k-per-week
5
5. Daniel James
£50k-per-week
3
Sourced by Capology/Sofascore
As can be seen by glancing at the table above, the likes of Junior Firpo and Pascal Struijk – who have been everpresent members of the Leeds defence so far this up-and-down campaign – will feel aggrieved that they fall short of Bamford’s wage, earning £60k-per-week and £50k-per-week respectively.
Gnonto will also feel rightly annoyed about his lower salary, which sees him not even enter into the top five earners bracket, with the former FC Zurich man on a lesser £30k-per-week pay packet.
If Farke doesn’t feel like he can rely on Bamford to be fit, talk will have to centre soon on whether the 31-year-old should be moved on from Elland Road or not, with his contract up in 2026.
There were even speculative conversations in the air recently that suggested the experienced head would be given a new deal soon, but his frustrating injury record and his high wage suggest other plans of action should be taken.
Leeds forward who made 0 key passes was worse than Solomon
The Whites attacker endured a difficult afternoon at Elland Road against Burnley.
3 ByDan EmerySep 14, 2024
Therefore, Farke should permanently ditch Bamford from the squad and look to move him on at the next possible opportunity, whether that is in January or next summer, due to his injury troubles and lack of return on the pitch for the wages he is on.