Stuart McKinstry recently made the switch from Motherwell to Leeds United. He was involved with Marcelo Bielsa’s senior side during a recent pre-season friendly match against Guiseley.
There had been no public confirmation of the 16-year-old’s transfer between the two clubs. His involvement from the bench for the Yorkshire club is as close to an announcement as we’re likely to get.
At 16 though he won’t feature much or at all for Bielsa’s side this season.
With that in mind, would a quick return to the SPFL be of benefit to McKinstry?
Leeds academy will only do McKinstry so much, senior minutes are needed
It’s all well and good developing in academies. You only find out what a player is made of when they make the step up into the senior game.
At 16 and now seemingly with Leeds, McKinstry has the world at his feet. A loan move back to familiar surrounings would provide the teenager with senior minutes and experience.
A loan move to the Premiership is probably too much of a step up for him just now. The winger only made the step up to professional level last year and wasn’t in any real contention for a Well first-team berth.
The Championship though could be a good breeding ground for him. Fellow young winger Aidan Fitzpatrick, who recently moved to Norwich, made a big impression in Scotland’s second tier last season.
A good dribbler and fairly quick, McKinstry is good technically. He’ll be 17 in September and needs to improve the physical side of his game. That’s much easier to do at a senior level than in an academy.
Even a move to say Falkirk in League One would be beneficial. He’d still be in a full-time environment, plus minutes would be more frequent.
McKinstry’s a decent young talent but sitting in an academy for large periods of time at his age won’t help his development too much. What will enhance it further is senior minutes, something he hasn’t had yet.
Leeds should consider the possibility of sending him back to Scotland this season.