Paul Robinson - the former Leeds United goalkeeper - believes Whites head coach Marcelo Bielsa has the managerial qualities to be able to get John Stones' career back on track.
The former Barnsley and Everton centre-back is currently out-of-favour at Manchester City and is being linked with a move away from the Etihad Stadium this summer.
Amongst the clubs to have been linked with him are Leeds, who are desperate to bolster their defensive options following their return to the Premier League last month.
The West Yorkshire club are desperate to re-sign former loanee Ben White from Brighton & Hove Albion, but the Seagulls' demands could prove to be a step too far for the Whites, who may have to explore other avenues to find club captain Liam Cooper a new defensive partner.
Amongst those to have been linked with a summer switch to Elland Road is Stones, who is highly likely to fall even further down the pecking order at the Etihad Stadium following Nathan Ake's big-money move from AFC Bournemouth.
However, though Robinson, who spent the first eight years of his career at Elland Road before sealing a move to Tottenham Hotspur, is confident that Bielsa would be able to turn Stones' fortunes around, he is aware of the defensive blunders the England international has been guilty of making in the past.
“He’s clearly not in favour at Manchester City at the moment and with the way Bielsa likes to play – with centre-halves having to be comfortable with the ball at their feet – and he certainly fits that criteria," Robinson told bookmakers.co.uk.
“But in the Championship Leeds conceded too many goals through defenders taking risks – John Stones is a player who takes too many chances and gets caught too often.
“Whether that would change under Bielsa, who is great at developing players as we’ve seen with Kalvin Phillips and Liam Cooper, would be an interesting one.”
Leeds' number one target this summer, of course, remains White. But with Brighton demanding such a hefty-sized transfer fee it could mean that Bielsa is forced to take his defender search elsewhere, with SC Freiburg defender Robin Koch another player that has been heavily linked with a switch to Elland Road in recent months.
