Billy Paynter is expected to complete a transfer to Doncaster Rovers on Monday, bringing to an end his torrid spell at Leeds.

Following the sale of Jermaine Beckford, Paynter arrived at Elland Road in 2010 and the pressure to succeed was high. The Liverpool-born striker was handed the number 9 shirt by then manager Simon Grayson who was expecting big things from the only player who had out-scored Beckford the season previous in League One.

Unfortunately, things never worked out for Paynter and he quickly became a target for ridicule amongst the Elland Road faithful who dubbed him “Barndoor” Billy due to his wayward shooting and subsequently poor goal return.

In many ways, Billy Paynter represents everything that went wrong with Simon Grayson’s Leeds United. When The Whites lost key players, very little money – often none at all – was made available for their replacements, leaving Simon Grayson forced to fill the gaps with free transfers and loanees. The result was invariably a drop in quality.

When Paynter’s transfer is completed on Monday, Neil Warnock will have successfully removed two high-earning players from the Elland Road wage bill in less than a week, which should hopefully free up funds for the “icing on the cake” signings the manager has been promising.