Leeds United director of football Victor Orta has insisted that the British players remain an important part of the club’s future.

Orta played a key role behind the scenes in Leeds’ big recruitment drive in the summer as the club looked towards the European market to get most of their business done, aware they would have had to pay more for British players.




While a good start to the season earned the Leeds recruitment team plaudits, a poor run of form, which has seen the Whites lose four of their last five league games, is now earning them criticism.

Many feel Leeds’ decision not to recruit too many players without Championship experience is telling now as some of the new signings have struggled in more physical battles.
 


Orta and his team have been accused of ignoring local talent, but he stressed that the core of the Leeds squad will always be British despite the increasing influence of foreign players.  

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He believes the right mix of British talent and foreign players is important for the future success of the club.

Orta told LUTV: “In modern football obviously the influence of the foreign players is important.

"In England football their influence in the last 15 to 20 years has been incredible.

“But I believe in the core of the British, Irish and United Kingdom players and they are key for the success of his club in the future.

“These clubs will always have these players.

"In the past foreigners such as [Mark] Viduka and Tony Yeboah had a great influence, but there were also a lot of UK players who were very important.

“In my past clubs we only became successful when we had a good mix of players who know the club, in this case know Leeds United, know the atmosphere of English football, know the league and can explain the influence of the foreigners to get success.

“It’s the key for our goals to return to the Premier League and our goal to create a new era at the club.”