'I have concerns' - Leeds United told which of Junior Firpo and Sam Byram to keep for the Premier League

Former Leeds United goalkeeper Paul Robinson has questioned whether Junior Firpo should be offered a fresh contract amid ‘concerns’ over the defender’s Premier League suitability.

Leeds confirmed last month that Firpo and fellow full-back Sam Byram are in talks over fresh terms, with both into the final weeks of their respective contracts. The former has attracted plenty of transfer interest in recent months, with Real Betis regularly linked while Olympique Lyonnais are believed to have made a proposal to the 28-year-old.

Firpo enjoyed an excellent 2024/25 campaign under Daniel Farke - his second under the German - registering four goals and 10 assists as Leeds racked up 100 points on their way to the Championship title. But the step up to Premier League football is massive and Robinson believes past defensive frailties could become apparent once again if the Dominican Republic international stays on.

“Byram makes sense. Firpo, I have my concerns about,” Robinson told MOT Leeds News. “Byram, I think he’s a good player, and I think he’s a good squad player. He’s not one who’s going to start every week, but you can see how versatile he is.

“Firpo, I’ve got my concerns about. I think he’s been excellent in the Championship. But some players, the Championship is their level, and in the Premiership, before he was exposed defensively, he was well out of position many times, susceptible to goals, and teams targeted him, and I think the step up was maybe too much for him.

“If he’s improved to the level that he’s shown in the Championship, then I’m looking forward to being proved wrong. But I’ve got my concerns about him defensively in the Premier League because of the way that he played there last time.“

How did Junior Firpo get on last time in the Premier League?

Firpo would be the first to admit he struggled during two years in the Premier League, following his £13million move from Barcelona in July 2021, but few excelled in a difficult environment as relegation loomed and managers changed. The attacking left-back also struggled regularly with Covid and injury, suggesting to the YEP earlier this year he was rushed back into action before being fully ready.

"I think I have a pretty good relationship with the fans at the minute. And obviously it is not a thing that I can say, that the last time in the Prem was good,” he said. “I know it wasn't good, but people need to know a lot of things. They just see me perform, but they don't know the amount of injuries that I was getting. And every time that I was recovering, I was straight back into the starting XI. This is not healthy for a player.

“The amount of times that I had COVID, I was in and out, and I feel like the situation in the club wasn't as good as it is now. So I think in this position now it is much, much different. Also, it might be something that I would like to do, you know, going to the Prem and playing at a good level to say that I'm Prem-proven and let people know this. But as I said let's see what happens, I don't know what's going to happen but I just wanted to say this."

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