Mateusz Klich admits he didn't want to leave Leeds United in January and had hoped to be an important part of the team under Jesse Marsch. However, the writing was on the wall for the Poland international who didn't start a league game for the Whites under the United States head coach.
The 32-year-old was a fan favourite during his time at Elland Road, playing his part in Marcelo Bielsa's Championship winning squad back in 2019-20. Klichy won the Leeds United Goal of the Season award the year prior to that, with a 30-yard strike against Sheffield Wednesday.
Tireless with his work ethic on the pitch and a great character off it, Whites' supporters were gutted when he left to join DC United, despite Leeds struggling in the top flight.
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Klich told Canal+, as per Weszlo: “I certainly could have stayed, but you don’t know how my story with the new coach turned out. I wanted to play a lot.
"I wasn’t happy playing 10-15 minutes. I wanted to be an important part of the team.
“Despite Leeds’ problems, I was one of the few who didn’t start a single league game. Various ideas began to appear, and finally I decided to take a very difficult and brave step.
"I decided to leave because I like playing football too much.”
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