‘As sad as it is’: Patrick Bamford admits all of Leeds players were telling 26-year-old to leave Elland Road

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Leeds United have had a busy start to the summer window, with key players Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha heading out the door.

Phillips completed a move from Leeds to Manchester City and Raphinha also made his long-awaited switch to Barcelona.

And while losing these players is a big blow for boss Jesse Marsch, Leeds striker Patrick Bamford has told the Press Association that he and his teammates were pushing Phillips to take the opportunity.

Leeds players told Phillips to leave

Bamford says that the 26-year-old Phillips deserves the chance to win trophies and revealed that the Leeds team were pushing him to make the move.

Speaking to the Press Association, he said: “He deserves this chance, he deserves to go and win trophies and fight for trophies on all fronts. None of us can begrudge him for going, I think we were all kind of, as sad as it is, pushing him because he deserves it and it’s his time.”

The Leeds striker also had his say on Raphinha and praised the Brazilian’s commitment during pre-season training, despite the fact he knew that he could be leaving the club.

“With Rapha (Raphinha) I think everyone knew Barcelona was his boyhood dream,” he said.

“Even when he came back and lost his weight and things to be sorted out, he was still good with the lads, he still trained hard in pre-season under Jesse (Marsch) even though he knew what was going on.”

Bamford added that he and his Leeds team mates wish the best for both players at their new club and that they deserve the opportunity.

Although Marsch has lost two of his best players this summer, Leeds have certainly not stood still in the market.

United have added six players so far as they look to use the funds they’ve gained through selling Raphinha and Phillips.

TBR’s View: Raphinha and Phillips are huge losses for Leeds, but they’re doing very smart business

There’s no hiding away from the fact that Raphinha and Phillips were probably Leeds’ two best players while at the club. But Leeds have signed a batch of promising young players that seem like a perfect fit for Marsch’s high-energy style.

They’ve also covered a range of positions across the pitch and look to be filling any weak areas in Marsch’s side.

The fact they’re signing players that the American boss knows is also a positive as he’ll be aware of exactly what they can bring to his new-look Leeds side.

The only concern is that they are relying on a group of players, who are all relatively young, to adapt to the Premier League. Leeds and Marsch will hope their new additions adapt quickly as they’ll be desperate to not be dragged into another relegation battle this season.