Sam Allardyce's brutal verdict on Georginio Rutter after Leeds United selection decision
Leeds United’s record signing played just 23 minutes under Sam Allardyce.
Sam Allardyce insists Georginio Rutter simply ‘wasn’t good enough’ to play a significant role in Leeds United’s four-game relegation scrap under his management.
Allardyce was appointed during the 2022-23 season in a desperate bid to stave off relegation at Leeds, who were above the drop zone only on goal difference at the time of his arrival in May following a run of four defeats and one draw in five games under Javi Gracia. The survival specialist had just four games to make an impact and so leaned on his more experienced squad members.
One player he did not lean on was Rutter, who did not register a single minute under Allardyce until the final game against Tottenham Hotspur, at which point he was thrown on for 23 minutes with his side 2-1 down and struggling. The young attacker arrived the prior January as a club-record signing worth more than £30million, with questions raised as to why such money was spent on potential over proven talent, with the club so perilously close to relegation.
“He wasn’t good enough,” Allardyce bluntly told Under The Cosh when asked why Rutter didn’t feature. “I just couldn’t believe they paid that much money for him. Under those circumstances he was too young. Coming in and playing in a struggling side in the Premier League that young was a lot to ask.”
Allardyce was unable to keep Leeds up, registering just one point from his four-game spell before leaving in a summer of major change. Rutter did stay on board and grew in confidence after the arrival of Daniel Farke as head coach, going on to enjoy an outstanding first full campaign in West Yorkshire.
The French youth international took the Championship by storm, registering six goals and an incredible 16 assists in 45 regular-season appearances before scoring again in the 4-0 play-off semi-final second-leg win over Norwich City. But defeat against Southampton in the final saw Leeds confined to another year of Championship action and Georginio made the step up to top-flight football without them this summer.
The 22-year-old was heavily involved in pre-season and featured in the first two games of the campaign, a 3-3 draw against Portsmouth and a 3-0 Carabao Cup defeat at home to Middlesbrough. In the hours after the latter defeat, news broke that Brighton and Hove Albion had triggered his £40m release clause, with the fan-favourite deciding to leave despite the club’s best efforts to keep hold of him.
Rutter has spoken openly about the early struggles he faced after joining Leeds, admitting to feeling the pressure of such a lofty price-tag. And the tricky attacker insisted the Whites would always remain in his heart in an emotional goodbye to supporters once his move to Brighton was confirmed.