Leeds United: Charlie Cresswell deal looks even better when compared to recent Southampton business - View | OneFootball

Southampton's transfer fees for Ronnie Edwards and Nathan Wood are both indicative of Leeds United's own recent success in selling Charlie Cresswell

There was a firm division of opinion on Charlie Cresswell among the Elland Road faithful during his time with Leeds United, with supporters often querying the shortage of frequent opportunities afforded to the central defender.

A product of the Whites' vaunted academy system, Cresswell has long been held in a high regard but only ever made 14 appearances at senior first-team level for Leeds, although he did make a real impression while on loan with Championship rivals Millwall in the 2022/23 campaign, making 30 appearances and scoring four times.

Despite signing a new four-year deal just last summer, Cresswell was unable to force his way into Daniel Farke's thinking and started only once in the Championship - all the way back in August against Birmingham City - as Leeds reached the play-off final before falling to defeat at the hands of Southampton.

However, Cresswell's short Leeds career is now over after Ligue 1 outfit Toulouse agreed a deal worth £3.8m to take the 21-year-old to France - a fee which has been commended in light of comparable external moves of late.

Leeds United's Charlie Cresswell sale compared to Ronnie Edwards, Nathan Wood

It's hard to argue that Leeds haven't done seriously well in getting Toulouse to cough up nearly £4m when you consider the fees that Southampton have shelled out for Ronnie Edwards and Nathan Wood in comparison, both of whom you'd argue are now ahead of Cresswell in their respective individual development.

21-year-old Edwards reportedly set Southampton back just £3m (not including future add-on clauses) from last season's League One play-off semi-finalists Peterborough United, which is a real snip given his age, match experience and profile as a left-footed, ball-playing central defender with outstanding distribution qualities and composure in possession. He's already played three full seasons of senior football, one of which was in the Championship and the other two saw him help Peterborough to consecutive top-six finishes.

The Wood situation is slightly more complex, with Russell Martin having offered up to £10m to take the defender he initially brought to Swansea down to Southampton after taking the reins at St Mary's last summer.

Wood, who celebrated his 22nd birthday at the end of May, eventually sealed a reunion with Martin by departing for a cut-price initial £3m outlay but had just a year remaining on his contract, forcing Swansea to swallow their price and sanction a sale in order to avoid losing him for nothing in twelve months' time.

Regardless of circumstances, Southampton have pulled off some genuinely extraordinary business by signing two of the EFL's most talented and promising young defenders for a combined upfront outlay of £6m, both of whom are destined for stellar careers and precisely align with Martin's possession-based, build-from-the-back principles. But just as it reflects glowingly on the Saints, it also serves as a timely reminder of just how well Leeds have done by selling Cresswell. His contract, only signed 12 months ago, helps but given his lack of match exposure, Leeds can be happy.

Ronnie Edwards, Nathan Wood Southampton transfer deals show Leeds United's excellent Charlie Cresswell business

The duo are both further ahead in their trajectories than Cresswell and have played much more football in their young careers to date, which proves that Leeds have pulled off a masterstroke with Toulouse.

It's also important to consider that Cresswell, despite his clear talent, was peripheral and therefore expendable at Leeds, whereas Edwards was a crucial cog for Peterborough and Wood was also a key part of Luke Williams' vision with Swansea City, who would've been able to play hardball, keep him on their terms and drive a hard bargain had his contract situation not forced them into parting ways against their will this summer.

You could quite reasonably state that Cresswell was deserving of more chances at Leeds - it could well have returned them with a higher transfer fee further down the line - and that may still be a source of certain frustration among supporters, but the surprisingly-cheap current market for young central defenders in the EFL is evidence of Leeds' success in receiving what they have from Toulouse.