Leeds United saw 10 players leave West Yorkshire on loan this summer. The likes of Charlie Cresswell, Lewis Bate and Stuart McKinstry left the club in order to find much-needed minutes elsewhere.
However, a handful of players were loaned out from the senior squad, too, with Helder Costa, Jamie Shackleton, Dan James and Tyler Roberts all moving on. Their long-term future with the Whites looks uncertain at present, but they’ll be determined to impress and prove a point to those at Elland Road this season.
Here’s how those players have got on so far.
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Helder Costa – Al-Ittihad
Costa was always going to struggle for game time this season at Elland Road and after being left out of the club’s pre-season trip to Australia, a move away always seemed likely. The Angola international spent last season on loan at Valencia and at the start of August he sealed a loan deal to Al-Ittihad of the Saudi Arabian Professional League.
The winger has made three appearances for the Jeddah-based club, who are managed by former Tottenham Hotspur and Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo, so far this season, helping them to an unbeaten start. His loan move will become permanent at the end of the campaign.
Charlie Cresswell - Millwall
To say Cresswell has made an impression in south London would be an understatement. The youngster is currently the Lions’ top scorer having scored three goals from centre-back and he looks to have nailed down a regular spot within Gary Rowett’s plans.
Cresswell only joined Millwall to get some minutes under his belt with his route to the Whites’ starting XI appearing crowded during pre-season. However, he’s been one of the stars of their season and so far he has made seven appearances in all competitions. He even has an assist to his name, too.
Lewis Bate – Oxford United
Bate made his Premier League debut for the Whites last season and he even made a start as Jesse Marsch put faith in him ahead a home game against Chelsea in May. However, given he was overlooked for the pre-season tour Down Under, it always seemed likely that Bate would look for regular game time on loan this season and he eventually joined Oxford United.
He’s made seven appearances in all competitions so far, including two League One starts, with his best moment being an assist during a 5-0 win over Leyton Orient in the Papa John’s Trophy.
Stuart McKinstry – Motherwell
McKinstry was another to make his Premier League debut for the Whites last season, but with chances appearing to be hard to come by this time around under Marsch, the Scottish youngster returned to Fir Park, where he initially started his career.
He’s only been with the North Lanarkshire side for a few weeks, but he has made two appearances off the bench, with his debut coming in the League Cup against Inverness, before featuring against Dundee United in the top flight. He’ll be hoping to build on those outings in the coming weeks and become a regular under Steven Hammell.
Mateusz Bogusz - Ibiza
Bogusz saw his loan spell with Ibiza cut short last season after injuring his knee during a 5-0 win over Malaga. He returned to Thorp Arch during his recovery, but Ibiza remained interested in the Poland youth international and took him on loan once more on August 31.
The 21-year-old hasn’t made an appearance during his second spell with the club just yet, but he’ll be keen to kick on and make an impression with his contract at Elland Road due to expire at the end of the season.
Jamie Shackleton – Millwall
Shackleton has struggled for traction in the Premier League with Leeds, with injuries severely hampering his hopes of progression at Elland Road. As such, the 22-year-old found himself down the pecking order at the start of pre-season and a loan move to the Championship was always thought to be on the cards.
Millwall took the Leeds-born midfielder for the season and he has been a key member of their line-up so far, featuring in all eight of their league matches. He’ll certainly be motivated to prove himself over the course of the season and send a message to those at Elland Road.
Dan James - Fulham
James made four league appearances for Leeds before his deadline day loan move to Fulham. The winger has struggled to perform consistently since his switch from Manchester United last year and as the deadline neared, he was one player deemed to be expendable by the Whites.
He’s only made one appearance for Fulham so far, coming off the bench during their 2-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur last time out, but he’ll be determined to prove himself in the top flight under Marco Silva.
Ian Poveda - Blackpool
Like Costa, Poveda seemed to be frozen out of Leeds’ first-team squad over pre-season and he failed to play a minute of pre-season action under Jesse Marsch. He joined Blackpool late in the window on a season-long loan deal and it seems he has already made quite the impression on the North West coast.
The winger was one of the Tangerines’ best in a 1-0 win at Huddersfield Town on September 4 and he’ll be keen to build on that and finally find some traction in his career moving forward.
Tyler Roberts - QPR
Roberts struggled for form last season in West Yorkshire and he was always going to face a challenge to secure consistent game time under Marsch, had he stuck around. As such, he joined QPR in July in the hope of not only picking up minutes but also nailing down his spot in Wales’ World Cup squad.
The forward missed the start of the season through injury, but he has now made six appearances in all competitions for the London outfit, with an impressive goal coming in a Carabao Cup first round tie with Charlton Athletic. It is thought QPR have the option to buy Roberts at the end of his loan deal and he’ll certainly be trying to catch the eye with his Championship form.
Jack Jenkins – Salford City
The 20-year-old was a regular in the Leeds U21s ranks this season before his switch across the Pennines to Salford City. Jenkins is still waiting to make his league debut for the club, but he managed to make a strong impression by scoring against Liverpool U21s in the Papa John’s Trophy in August.
With the Football League returning to action this weekend, Jenkins will be attempting to force his way into Neil Wood’s starting line-up.
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