£15 million Leeds United trio approaching contract crossroads as transfer decision deadline nears

Allowing contracts to run into their final year can be a dangerous game in football, transferring power over players' futures from clubs into the hands of the players themselves.

It is widely accepted that 12 months before a player's contract expiry date is the last opportunity for a club to seek full market value in the transfer window. As their expiry nears, interested clubs are less willing to part with a fee when they know in a matter of months, said target will be available on a free transfer.

Therefore, clubs tend to tie top prospects down to long-term deals, protecting playing investments, as well as being able to spread the cost of the fee paid for their services over the length of their contract.

Leeds currently have four players whose time at Elland Road will expire next summer as long as nothing is done on the contract front in the meantime. While Sam Byram's one-year extension, taking him up to the end of this coming season, has just been confirmed, three other players, some significantly younger than the local full-back, face a decision over their own futures.

Firpo's four-year deal, signed in the summer of 2021, is up at the end of 2024/25 when Leeds could still be a Championship side. The defender has spent the last three seasons at Elland Road, enjoying his best and most fruitful campaign last year, recording eight assists as United went agonisingly close to promotion.

The 27-year-old Dominican Republic international is unlikely to be short of offers in Spain, where he previously appeared for Real Betis and Barcelona before joining Leeds in an £11m deal, and may not see his future with the Whites beyond the end of 2024/25, particularly if Leeds' second attempt at returning to the Premier League is unsuccessful.

Firpo's future is unlikely to be resolved this summer, meaning it is a possibility he could leave on a free in 12 months time, as a sale midway through the upcoming campaign does not seem like something Daniel Farke would sanction given the impact Firpo had last term.

Klaesson, on the other hand, may decide enough is enough at Leeds this summer and angle for a switch back to his native Norway or simply somewhere he is more likely to play regularly. The 23-year-old appeared three times for Leeds last season, in the brief absence of Illan Meslier and Karl Darlow, but was firmly third-choice and has been for almost the entire duration of his three-year stay in West Yorkshire. If Leeds are to make some of their money back on the £2.5 million invested three summers ago, now is the time to do it.

Then, there is Perkins, the youngest of the trio at just 20. Last season was a wasted year for the ex-West Ham United prospect, sent out on loan to Oxford United in League One where minutes were not forthcoming, recalled in January and tasked with playing out the remainder of the campaign with Leeds' depleted Under-21 side, which finished third-bottom of the 26-team Premier League 2 standings. Perkins cannot afford a repeat of last season and discussions are likely to take place over the summer to decide next steps. It is sometimes the case that young players in particular sign one or two-year extensions to their parent club contracts before being sent out on loan, which appears a likely scenario for the attacker who shone in his first campaign with Leeds' youngsters.

However, any such deal will need to be struck before too long, that is if it is made clear to the player he still has a future at Elland Road. Given Leeds are expected to have parted with a tribunal fee in the low millions, serving as training compensation, for his release from West Ham, it is not likely the club are willing to simply write off a promising young player after one unsuccessful loan spell.

While decisions over their futures may not be an immediate priority for the Leeds hierarchy, talks will need to be held at some stage over the summer to avoid a scenario in which all three are seen to leave on free transfers next summer.