Leeds United landed a club icon for just £3m - He's now scored over 85 PL goals | OneFootball

Chris Wood was a superb signing from Leeds United.

Chris Wood's 2016-17 season was one to remember, as he tore Championship defences apart for Leeds United.

Now 33, he remains in the spotlight at Nottingham Forest, driving them towards European football, but his final campaign in the second tier was nothing short of sensational.

The New Zealand international began his career in England at West Bromwich Albion as a fresh-faced 17-year-old and made a surprise debut in 2009 against Portsmouth at Fratton Park.

Over the next four years, he embarked on various loan spells across the EFL, making his most notable impact at Millwall in 2012-13, where he struck 11 goals in just 19 games. This rich vein of form earned him a move to Leicester City, but he struggled to establish himself in the side.

In 2015-16, he made the switch from the King Power to Elland Road - just as the Foxes were on the brink of making history by winning the Premier League. Missing out on such a momentous achievement would have been a personal disappointment for Wood, but moving to Leeds was undoubtedly the right decision for his career ambitions.

Over the next two seasons, he firmly established himself as a key figure for the Whites, with his time in Yorkshire providing the springboard his career needed.

Chris Wood's magical spell with Leeds

Wood made the move to Leeds for a fee of around £3 million and his first season was just a glimmer of what was to come from the striker.

The Whites were a team in flux during the 2015-16 season and it was another managerial merry-go-round for the club, with Uwe Rösler dismissed early in the season and replaced by Steve Evans.

The team was inconsistent, and while Wood managed 13 goals, he faced some criticism from supporters who doubted whether he was the right man to lead them back to the Premier League.

Despite the doubters, he hit back the following campaign and his 30-goal season was quite magical.

Under the guidance of new manager, Garry Monk, the Whites found more stability as this worked perfectly for Wood.

Given full trust as the club’s main striker, he repaid the faith in style, opening his account for the season in an EFL Cup victory over Fleetwood. He added two more goals in that competition, but it was in the league where he truly took charge, netting a remarkable 27 goals.

His lethal finishing saw him crowned the Championship’s top scorer and transformed him into a fan favourite at Elland Road. Suddenly, the same supporters who had once doubted him were now singing his name.

With Wood leading the line, Leeds looked destined for a play-off place. However, a late-season slump saw them fall just short, finishing seventh. It was a bitter disappointment, but Wood’s performances left no doubt - he was one of the best strikers outside the Premier League.

Premier League comes calling for Chris Wood

Having become such an influential player for Leeds, interest was always going to arrive and Burnley arrived in early August with a £12 million bid.

This was subsequently rejected, but the attacker had become unsettled and, with a chance to move to the Premier League, he ruled himself out of the game against Sunderland in mid-August amid news of a £15 million switch.

This news annoyed supporters, but it didn't stop Wood sealing his move to Turf Moor as the Whites agreed with the £15 million fee.

Coincidentally, the clubs met a few weeks later in the League Cup and Wood was given a "hostile reception" by the home support, who voiced their displeasure at him leaving.

Since then, the Auckland-born striker has gone on to play for Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest, scoring over 85 goals in the Premer League in total, but he has yet to replicate the same goal-scoring form he achieved during that memorable season with the Whites.