Leeds United, Ipswich Town transfer agreement will forever be talked about at Elland Road and Portman Road: View | OneFootball

Leif Davis has been a superb signing for Ipswich and the minimal fee they paid will be talked about at both club's for years to come.

Highlights

Leif Davis is a name that will live long in the memory of both Leeds United and Ipswich Town fans.

The young left-back was essentially gifted to the Tractor Boys for a cut-price fee and, given Leeds' struggles at left-back in the 2023-24 season and the years that went before it, you have to question why he wasn't given more of an opportunity.

Initially signing for the Whites from Morecambe in 2018, Davis spent his early time in Yorkshire featuring for the under-23s. His impressive form at that level earned him an opportunity in the first-team under the guidance of Marcelo Bielsa, but he found appearances limited, with the Argentine favouring Ezgjan Alioski.

This was to be expected given Davis' age, but after a mediocre loan move to AFC Bournemouth, his parent club surprisingly opted to allow him to leave on a permanent deal that summer.

It was at-the-time League One Ipswich who jumped at the opportunity to sign him and their bid of £1 million was accepted, with the Tractor Boys supposedly offering more than some top-level Championship sides.

The signing proved an inspired one and all those involved with the East-Anglian club will be thankful Leeds were so hasty in their decision-making.

Leif Davis guides Ipswich to success

By now, the story of Ipswich Town's successive promotions has become somewhat of a household topic, with Kieran McKenna guiding his side to the Premier League.

The Tractor Boys had suffered three years of League One mediocrity before McKenna arrived and brought a lease of life to a previously pleasure-stricken Portman Road.

Financially, they were one of the top clubs in the division and the signing of Davis was a real standout in what was a strong transfer window.

In League One, Davis was superb as he showcased his attacking threat in a dynamic system. After starting three of his first four games, he made his first goal contribution on match-day five against Shrewsbury Town with a brilliant pull-back to Conor Chaplin, who duly slotted it into the bottom corner.

Throughout the rest of the season, he showed Leeds what they were missing, providing 14 assists and scoring three goals as Ipswich secured a return to the Championship at the fourth time of asking.

Davis goes head-to-head with Leeds

Leeds' 2022-23 relegation from the Premier League meant that Davis would get the chance to return to Elland Road with his Ipswich side.

For critics of the East-Anglians, it was questioned whether they could transfer their football into the Championship. Quickly, it became apparent they could, with the Tractor Boys losing just one of their opening fifteen games as Davis continued to thrive.

Of course, the one fixture they did lose was to promotion rivals Leeds, with Luis Sinisterra's 75th-minute goal proving the winner in a thrilling 4-3 win for the Whites; in the reverse fixture, a Davis own goal and clumsy tackle leading to a penalty contributed to a 4-0 win for the Whites.

This didn't deter Davis or Ipswich though, and the left-back proved the Yorkshire club made the wrong decision as he provided assists for his team week in and week out. By the end of the campaign, he had a staggering 20 goal contributions from left-back, making him one of the biggest threats in the division.

These numbers weren't in vain either as Ipswich pipped Daniel Farke's Leeds to promotion, accumulating a staggering 96 points to secure second position.

For the Whites, it got even worse, with a play-off final defeat to Southampton proving a nail in the coffin of their promotion hopes.

Given his exploits at left-back in the Championship, it is somewhat of an understatement to say Leeds made the wrong decision by selling Davis at such a cut-price fee.

Not only was he brilliant for McKenna's side, but he would have been the player to solve Farke's 2023–24 issues at left-back.

Throughout the campaign, we saw different players feature in that position, with Junior Firpo's injury problems keeping him out for almost half of the season. Leeds fans would have been expectant that those provided with an opportunity would be of sufficient standard - but they just weren't.

Had they retained Davis in 2022, they would have been able to rely on him to play the whole season. His attacking threat is also far superior to that of Firpo's, so he could have helped provide goals in key moments, like their 1-0 defeat to Blackburn or their 0-0 draw with Sunderland.

Of course, this is all in hindsight, but Leeds fans have to look back with despair at the decision made by their board on the 25th of July 2022. Ipswich will have fonder memories of that day, though.