Tom Heaton would be the ideal solution to Leeds United’s goalkeeping crisis
According to Daily Star, Leeds United are plotting a loan move for Burnley’s English international goalkeeper Tom Heaton.
Leeds currently face a burnout of options between the sticks with Chelsea loanee Jamaal Blackman returning to his parent club with a knee injury and Bailey Peacock-Farrell also sidelined with a similar injury.
The Peacocks are in dire need of a goalkeeper to continue their surge for promotion and Marcelo Bielsa was forced to field 20-year-old academy product Willian Huffer between the sticks against Bristol City in the previous outing. Fortunately enough for Leeds, the youngster prevailed and kept a clean sheet in the 2-0 victory.
According to Leeds Live, Marcelo Bielsa was set to drop Bailey Peacock-Farrell for the game against Bristol City and had backed Jamaal Blackman to take his position between the sticks. However, both the goalkeepers suffered an injury, leaving the manager in a goalkeeping crisis.
As a matter of fact, Peacock-Farrell hasn’t been in great form in recent weeks, with his errors costing the team dear against West Brom. Leeds suffered a 4-1 loss against the Baggies before the international break and the 22-year-old was at the receiving end of a lot of criticism for his lacklustre display between the sticks, failing to keep out a rather tame long-range effort.
Furthermore, Peacock-Farrell hasn’t shown the ability to command proceedings inside the box, hesitating to come out and grab the ball from corners and has been poor with his decision-making. At times, he has invited unnecessary danger with his bizarre ball distribution.
Suffice to say, Leeds need a reliable presence between the sticks to propel them to the Premier League next season and Burnley’s Tom Heaton certainly ticks all the boxes at Elland Road.
The 32-year-old has been frozen out of the first-team picture by manager Sean Dyche following Joe Hart’s arrival in the summer. Hart has impressed with his consistent performances between the sticks, causing the manager to relegate Heaton to bench duty. And Heaton is expected to drop further down the pecking order with Nick Pope set to return from his shoulder injury in January.
He was Burnley’s club captain back in the 2016-17 season in the Premier League where he made 35 appearances and played an important role between the sticks as the Clarets managed to avoid the drop. He just played four games last season before he was sidelined with a long-term injury but the hugely experienced goalkeeper has been overlooked by Dyche this term.
Heaton’s experience and quality can be a huge boost to Leeds’ surge for promotion. The 32-year-old was twice a part of Burnley’s promotion winning seasons in the Championship in recent years.
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It is not only about his experience but he can also bring in a lot of quality to the team. Known as a brave and fearless goalkeeper, Heaton is not afraid to pluck the ball out of thin air to save his team’s demise. Even at the age of 32, the Burnley man has razor-sharp reflexes and is a good stopper from close range. To add to that, he is sensible with his decision-making and has a safe pair of hands.
That said, Leeds should definitely complete this loan move in January to enhance their chances of securing promotion to the top-flight.
