WITH Leeds United virtually assured of their Championship status they can start planning for next season.

On-loan central defender Sol Bamba must surely be somewhere near the top of head coach Neil Redfearn’s shopping list.

Since his arrival on loan from Italian club Palermo, the Whites have kept five clean sheets in 10 games – the latest against play-off dreamers Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

The former Senegal international put in another strong performance as defences ruled the day in a game that failed to match the atmosphere generated by Elland Road’s first 30,000-plus attendance of the season.

The sides entered the game on good form but cancelled each other out as they struggled to find the telling final pass. On the rare occasions chances were created, goalkeepers Marco Silvestri and Karl Darlow proved secure.

Both Redfearn and his counterpart Dougie Freedman declared themselves happy with a point but oddly the Forest boss didn’t use any substitutes to try to force a victory which would have narrowed the gap on the other promotion hopefuls.

Leeds look to be heading for a mid-table finish, something they would have settled for in January when they found themselves just a point above the drop zone.

“I think it (a point) was about right,” said Redfearn. “I thought both sides played well and were tight at the back. Some days you can come up against someone organised and it doesn’t quite happen.”

Bamba and co will need to be on their toes again on Wednesday night when they go to Fulham whose attack features former United men Ross McCormack and Matt Smith, who scored 40 Championship goals between them last season.

Meanwhile, Redfearn said he did not want to lose Italian striker Mirco Antenucci, a substitute against Forest. The former Catania man has been linked with a move to Championship title-chasing Norwich.

Leeds United: Silvestri, Beradi, Bamba, Bellusci, Wootton, Cook, Mowatt, Murphy, C Taylor (Doukara 79), Morison (Antennucci 67), Sharp. Subs (not used): S Taylor, Cani, Cooper, Sloth, Phillips. Cautions: Bellusci, Morison, Mowatt, Murphy.

Nottingham Forest: Darlow, Mancienne, Lascelles, Wilson, Lichaj, Lansbury, Osborn, Gardner, Burke, Antonio, Blackstock. Subs (not used): Collins, Fox, Veldwijk, Paterson, Vaughan, Evtimov, Walker Referee: Keith Hill (Hertfordshire) Att: 30,722