Leeds United's triumphant return to the Premier League in 2020 suggested they had returned to stay for the long haul, and when Marcelo Bielsa led them to a ninth-placed finish in their first year back, fans were in dreamland.

They had a top-quality manager and were mixing it with some of England's finest once again, before disaster struck.

Poor recruitment and subsequent injuries led the Argentine down a tricky path to navigate, which eventually culminated in his sacking. Three managers followed him before their eventual relegation, ending their three-year stay in the top flight.

Whilst there are few positives to take from such a catastrophic event, which can prove devastating for clubs who succumb to the drop, the fact that most of this gutless playing staff will be purged should stand as a positive for Andrea Radrizzani to take.

Although the Italian seems set to depart Elland Road with the club in the same place as he inherited it, he will still have to oversee the potential exits of some of their higher-profile names until such a sale goes through.

One name on that list will surely be Robin Koch, although fans will likely not be too frustrated with losing the underwhelming German defender.

How has Robin Koch played for Leeds United?

Having signed under Bielsa for a fee rising to £13m, this 2020 acquisition was meant to underpin their revitalised defence ready to tackle the Premier League.

Whilst he was largely solid in that successful return campaign, maintaining a 6.85 average rating in the 2020/21 season, he remained a constant presence in the subsequent collapse over the two years that followed.

This season saw the 26-year-old play 36 times in the league for a side that shipped 78 goals, the most of any club in the division.

His personal displays were woeful too, as his average rating of 6.63 suggests. Yesterday's showing against Tottenham Hotspur stands as an example of such mediocrity, as he was dribbled past twice and lost eight duels on their way to a 4-1 loss, via Sofascore.

Ironically enough, it is now the Lilywhites who are being linked with a cut-price swoop for Koch; a move which fans and sections of the Leeds media would welcome.

After all, journalist Beren Cross once noted following a 5-1 defeat against Manchester United in 2021, that he was "horrible to watch." That has rather aptly summed up several moments throughout his stint at Elland Road.

With this summer sure to be a transformative one, as Radrizzani seeks to shift his efforts to Sampdoria and find someone else to take over in Yorkshire, perhaps it could be cathartic to rid the club of all the failures who came in and promised the world, only to deliver further frustration for this relentless and ever-loyal fanbase.

Koch's exit would provide the silver lining to this, the darkest of clouds that relegation provides.