How is ex-Leeds United star Charlie Cresswell getting on in France? | OneFootball

Looking at Charlie Cresswell's first few games with Toulouse since his exit from Leeds United this summer.

Charlie Cresswell was scarcely utilised by Daniel Farke at Leeds United, and the centre-back has since de[arted the club to French side Toulouse in search of regular game time.

The Whites' academy graduate sealed a £3.8 million move to the Ligue 1 outfit, with Leeds needing to raise funds and happy to sell a player that has failed to nail down a consistent starting spot under Farke.

After developing during a loan stint with Millwall, the 22-year-old may have been hoping to be afforded more opportunities with Leeds last season since they were relegated to the Championship, but he struggled to break into Farke's plans consistently.

Cresswell only penned a new four-year contract last August, which saw him commit his future to the Whites until the summer of 2027, but 12 months on he has left the side for good.

Cresswell started just one Championship game and two EFL Cup ties for Leeds in 2023/24. His last game came in a 3-0 win over Rotherham United in early February, with just six minutes of normal time left to play.

The centre-back found himself way down the pecking order, with Pascal Struijk and Joe Rodon starting the majority of games, and Liam Cooper or Ethan Ampadu the primary deputies in their absence, meaning Cresswell was regularly named amongst the substitutes as an unused sub, including in 13 of the final 15 league games.

Charlie Cresswell leaves Leeds for Toulouse

After making his debut for the club in an EFL Cup clash with Hull City in 2020, big things were expected of the United academy graduate, but things haven’t quite panned out the way both player and club would have liked.

Following a successful loan with Millwall only just over a year ago, Cresswell could be forgiven for thinking that he may have a larger role with Leeds in 2023/24. A season of stagnation instead followed where many thought he may kick on.

Cresswell proved with the Lions in the season prior that he is capable of starting games in the second tier. The best thing for his development was regular game time and he was simply not granted.

Cresswell, like many other fringe players, was in need of developmental minutes at senior level, as opposed to languishing within Leeds' reserves or on the fringes of the first-team with very little game time to speak of.

Doubts were cast over the defender during the season, with boss Farke questioning the young star’s focus as he continued to drop down the pecking order with the West Yorkshire outfit.

Despite being handed the number-five shirt, that proved to be something of nothing, with many fans expecting it to be some sort of statement of intent. The 22-year-old was instead cast aside in many ways and deemed to be surplus to requirements for Farke last season, having only featured in five Championship matches over the course of the campaign.

The youngster had captained the Whites at youth level throughout many different age groups, and also impressed in the Premier League during a 2-1 loss to West Ham United at Elland Road in 2021/22, but even with the Whites competing in the second tier, he was unable to break into his plans in a meaningful way.

Leeds were then looking to offload players to balance the books in the summer after missing out on promotion, with funds needing to be raised to meet EFL financial regulations. Cresswell represents pure profit in terms of PSR, as he is an academy product, so they were able to book all the cash from his sale.

The 22-year-old’s move away from Elland Road was said to have fallen through at one stage, with Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Graham Smyth reporting that the move broke down due to the player, not the clubs involved.

But the transfer saga ended when Toulouse got the green light from Cresswell, with Leeds bringing in a reported £3.8 million for the giant central defender.

Of course, Leeds are a second tier side and Toulouse are competing in the French top-flight, having secured an 11th-placed finish last season. They also have an extremely young side, like many in France, and Cresswell will be looking to impress and potentially return to England one day.

Cresswell will hope the move to France will help to kickstart his career, after enduring a tough time with Leeds due to lack of minutes on the pitch for the Whites, and he has almost played the same number of minutes as last season with his new side.

In his first two outings, Cresswell's new side played him for the full 90 minutes, during draws to Nantes and OGC Nice. Cresswell completed 97 of his 125 passes across those games, whilst also registering nine tackles, interceptions, and blocks combined (all stats per FBref).

After a strong start, it all started to go wrong during a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Marseille, with Cresswell's pass completion dropping down to 60%, as he completed just 13 take-ons in the game, compared to 76 in the opening fixtures.

Not only that, but he was directly at fault for two of the goals in the clash, and did not crown himself in glory on the other either. He was hauled off after 62 minutes and dropped to the bench for the fourth appearance against Le Havre, where Toulouse won 2-0 and he came on with just nine minutes remaining.

The disaster-class against the French giants in his third outing could prove to be costly in winning his place back in the side, with experienced full-back Djibril Sidibe taking his place as the right-sided centre-back alongside the talented duo of Mark McKenzie and Rasmus Nicolaisen in their back three system.

His aerial prowess will come in handy from set-pieces in certain scenarios. If not to score directly, then to put it across for a teammate, but will that prove to be enough? Will Leeds end up regretting his sale? It appears not, as things stand, but there is still plenty of the season left to be played.