George Wood/Getty Images
Former Championship striker Sam Parkin believes that Leeds United winger Willy Gnonto is someone who could slot into any other Championship side and even some in the Premier League.
The Whites signed Gnonto from Swiss outfit FC Zurich in the summer of 2022 when they were still in the Premier League.
Following some uncertainty regarding his future after the club got relegated in his first season in England, Gnonto has settled down and even signed a contract extension in August this year.
Parkin has been left impressed by Gnonto’s performances this term and believes that the 21-year-old could affect not just any Championship team, but even Premier League teams.
He admits that Gnonto seems to have been given a license to roam by Leeds boss Daniel Farke, though is keen to see more goals from the Italian.
“It seems like he [Gnonto] has been there forever. And he is still only 21”, Parkin told the Championship Check In Show.
“You want to see the numbers increase over a period of time because he flatters to deceive in some games, but I have enjoyed watching him when I have seen him live the last few occasions.
“I think he is afforded a little bit of flexibility within the system to roam around and that’s problematic for the opposition.
“He drops into the number ten quite a lot if he is starting wide.
“But yes I want to see a few more goals.
“I think there are so many 24-25 [year-olds at Leeds, the likes of] [Ethan] Ampadu, [Largie] Ramazzani, [Ilia] Gruev, [Manor] Solomon.
“[Pascal] Struijk has been amazing by all accounts.
“I have not seen him too often live so far this season.
“But I think Gnonto is ready-made isn’t he?
“And he would come in and affect absolutely any Championship outfit at the moment and probably Premier League teams as well.”
Though Gnonto has scored just two goals in 15 Championship appearances so far, he has set up five goals for his team-mates.
Farke will be looking to see the winger keep his form going over what promises to be a busy December.
