Leeds United have signed a new striker and are closing in on the addition of a centre-back in the form of Jaka Bijol, after a breakthrough in talks occurred on Monday afternoon.
Leeds are looking to improve the spine of Daniel Farke’s senior side. Lukas Nmecha comes in to provide competition up top, though Leeds are expecting to sign a new striker alongside the Germany forward.
Fabrizio Romano says a move to sign Jaka Bijol is now done, with the centre-back set to arrive for a fee of £18.75m. Now, Leeds will be focusing their efforts on a midfielder, a starting striker and a goalkeeper.
Reports from France say the £22m addition of Habib Diarra is ‘imminent’ but that is yet to be confirmed by those in England. Now, a goalkeeper on Leeds’ shortlist is available for a bargain fee of just £6m.
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Yahia Fofana is on the move and available for a bargain fee
Earlier this summer, 18-time Ivory Coast international Yahia Fofana was linked with a move to Leeds. The Angers goalkeeper played a crucial role in keeping his side in Ligue 1 last season, missing just one game.
In his 33 league games, Fofana kept seven clean sheets and conceded 51 times. But Fofana has entered the final year of his deal with Angers and the French side will have to sell to avoid losing him on a free.
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Now, Africa Foot say Angers will accept bids of just £6m for Fofana this summer if interested clubs do come knocking. Leeds then, can land a top-quality goalkeeper on the cheap with Illan Meslier set to go.
Who will Leeds have to beat in order to sign goalkeeper Fofana?
The report from Africa Foot state that Newcastle are also interested in Fofana. The Magpies are expected to try and sign James Trafford from Burnley, but with Burnley promoted, Trafford may stay at Turf Moor.
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It is not just Leeds and Newcastle interested in Fofana, either. There is a chance Fofana could move to Italy with Serie A side Torino keen on a deal to land the Ivory Coast stopper in the coming weeks.
But Leeds need a goalkeeper more than most with Phil Hay saying Meslier is “done” at Elland Road. Karl Darlow is likely to return to his role as back-up but with the World Cup coming up, he may also depart.