Leeds United are in a major period of transition with a drop back into the Championship and a change in hands of ownership confirmed over the last few weeks.
The Whites are still on the hunt for the next manager to lead the squad at Elland Road after parting company with Sam Allardyce following Premier League relegation last month, but have managed to appoint an interim football advisor in former Newcastle consultant Nick Hammond.
Whilst there are many major loose ends to tie up before Leeds can start planning for their next chapter, it will be essential for the club's hierarchy to start thinking about the recruitment and squad personnel who will remain to compete for an instant bounce back to the Premier League next season.
Indeed, it has been reported that the appointment of a manager will be finalised next week and the club will surely be keen to allow the new boss to come in and make his own assessments before making solid moves in the summer transfer window, but there are certainly players worth taking a look at as soon as possible.
One player who was linked with a move to West Yorkshire back in January is Axel Tuanzebe, with the young talent offered to the club for a six-month loan spell before he went to Stoke City instead.
Now the Manchester United academy graduate has been released by the Red Devils and it could be the perfect opportunity for Leeds to snap up a free agent with huge potential.
Who would Tuanzebe replace in the Leeds team?
It is looking increasingly likely that Robin Koch will depart this summer as the pair are attracting a lot of interest, meaning there is a huge opportunity to snap up the services of a right-sided centre-back this summer.
Koch – who has been branded "not good enough" by pundit Gabby Agbonlahor – has somewhat surprisingly been linked to a number of Premier League sides including Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Newcastle United this week.
As a result, the release of Tuanzebe could not have come at a better time for Leeds and if they can move fast, there is no reason why the defender couldn't bolster the centre-back options at Elland Road next season, especially considering he is available for free.
The 6 foot 1 titan – hailed "unbelievable" by David de Gea – has struggled with injuries which have plagued his ability to find some consistency in his football, but has shown glimpses of his talents and strengths.
Tuanzebe's best period in his career so far came at Aston Villa where he helped the side earn promotion to the Premier League through the second-tier play-offs.
Over 25 Championship appearances, the 25-year-old tallied up an 85% pass completion rate and successfully completed 79% of his dribbles, as well as averaging 59.6 touches, 1.2 tackles, four clearances and 5.6 duels won per game, demonstrating that he can be a huge presence when playing consistently and has sound experience of playing in the second tier, which could be a huge asset to Leeds next season.
With that being said, although it may be risky to put trust in Tuanzebe to be available over the entire campaign, he could still be valuable to Leeds in their pursuit for promotion and would be a good piece of business for the club as a free agent.
