It’s been inevitable for some time now, but this week we finally had it confirmed that Jack Clarke would be returning to Tottenham once the January transfer window opens.

The winger was impressive enough during his first season at Elland Road to earn an £10m move to Spurs, but for one reason or another, Marcelo Bielsa hasn’t fancied him this time around.

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Indeed, the winger has appeared in just one league game this term, and it seems Spurs weren’t too happy with how that arrangement was going.

Losing a £10m player would usually be a big loss for any Championship side, but for the Whites it may actually be a positive.

Clarke going back to Spurs cuts the number of loanees Leeds have in their squad down to five, and that means that there may be space for United to bring in another player on a temporary basis.

United have been skating around the EFL’s rules regarding loanees that state they’re only allowed five loan players in a matchday squad. However, due to injuries and rotation, Leeds have been able to hand Clarke a spot on the bench in 16 games this term despite only appearing once.

Therefore, it’s plausible for Leeds to sign another loanee who Bielsa thinks more of and give him enough gametime to keep his parent club happy while also complying with the EFL’s rules on these types of deals.

In other news, Leeds shouldn’t be too disheartened if they miss out on one of their January targets.