Exclusive:'He could' - Jermaine Beckford delivers verdict on Mateo Joseph's Leeds United future after tough loan spell
Jermaine Beckford delivers verdict on Mateo Joseph's Leeds United future after tough loan spell
Leeds United icon Jermaine Beckford believes Mateo Joseph could force his way back into the fold at Elland Road - if he knuckles down.
The 22-year-old requested a move away from West Yorkshire last summer in a development that surprised manager Daniel Farke.
He was subsequently loaned to La Liga outfit Mallorca, but the goals did not flow in the country of the forward’s birth. Joseph managed two goals in 30 appearances in Spain before an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury brought his campaign to an early end.
There was no buy option included in the deal that sent Joseph to Mallorca, but there is still a considerable degree of uncertainty regarding his future.
Jermaine Beckford’s Mateo Joseph verdict
“Mateo has got talent,” Beckford told The Yorkshire Post via Ivy Casino. “He's got technical ability. He's got good pace about him as well. We've seen when he's been with the under-21s how good he is at finishing.
“He's had a couple of decent goals as well for the first team, I remember the Chelsea game at Stamford Bridge. He's got it, he just needs to knuckle down, get rid of the external noise, focus on working his socks off, and I think he could [force his way back in].
“Do I think Daniel Farke and the hierarchy want to keep him knowing that he could possibly upset the apple cart? I'm not entirely sure. But it's for Mateo to come back and show that this is a new and improved version of himself. He's got the ability.”
Brenden Aaronson example to follow
Beckford has pointed to the path trodden by Brenden Aaronson as one Joseph needs to walk in order to return to the picture.
Aaronson spent the 2023/24 season on loan at Union Berlin before returning to Leeds and becoming one of Farke’s most trusted lieutenants.
“I think when you look at Brenden Aaronson, when he went out on loan to Germany, lots of people were saying ‘he can't come back now, there's no way back for him’,” said Beckford. “And look what he's been able to do.
“He's been able to turn it around through sheer hard work, hard graft, working his socks off. There's no yapping, no talking going on, no backchat.
“He's just knuckled down and said, ‘I've got a point to prove, I'm in the Premier League, I play for one of the biggest clubs in the world, Leeds United, I love it here, what can I do to make sure I stay?’. That’s work hard. It’s stay late for training, get to training early.”