Leeds United are going to be in the market to add another centre-forward to their squad before the summer transfer window slams shut at the start of September.
The Whites have brought in German striker Lukas Nmecha, who has signed on a free transfer from Wolfsburg, but the 26-year-old may not be an immediate first-choice option.
wolfsburg-lukas-nmecha-leeds-transfer
In the 2024/25 campaign, the former Manchester City youth player produced three goals and zero assists in 19 games in the Bundesliga, which does not suggest that he is going to hit the ground running as a regular scorer in the Premier League.
Another current Leeds player who may not be leading the line in the top-flight is Joel Piroe, as Football Insider reported in May that the club have doubts about his ability to make the step up.
Despite a return of 19 goals and seven assists in the Championship last season, the Dutch striker may find himself having to fight his way back to being first-choice next term.
All of this does mean, though, that Leeds may have to dip into the market to bring in another number nine, as they look for Daniel Farke's own Rodrigo.
What Rodrigo brought to Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds
After Marcelo Bielsa won promotion to the Premier League in 2020, sporting director Victor Orta heavily backed him during the summer transfer window.
rodrigo-transfer-gossip-leeds-united-live-updates-ola-solbakken-as-roma
The biggest move of the off-season was a £30m club-record deal to bring Spain international Rodrigo to Elland Road from Valencia to improve the manager's options at the top end of the pitch.
It was a big move for Leeds because Rodrigo had racked up 59 goals and 41 assists in 220 appearances in all competitions for Valencia, which shows that the club were bringing in a star who had already proven his quality in front of goal for a big European side.
The Whites went on to benefit from his quality at the top end of the pitch as the Spanish forward scored 28 goals and provided five assists in 98 games for the club in all competitions during his time at Elland Road.
|Rodrigo's versatility for Leeds|
|Position|Starts|Goals|Assists|
|---|
|Centre-forward|37|13|2|
|Attacking midfield|22|5|2|
|Second striker|18|3|1|
|Right winger|3|1|0|
|Left winger|1|1|0|
|Stats via Transfermarkt|
As you can see in the table above, Rodrigo also provided positional versatility for Leeds to go along with his goals and assists, as he had the capability to play in a multitude of attacking roles for Bielsa.
rodrigo-leeds-stats_720
Leeds are now looking for a forward who could make a similar impact to the Spaniard in the Premier League next season, and they are reportedly eyeing up a striker who could fit the bill.
Leeds have Championship striker on their radar
According to journalist Graeme Bailey, Leeds United are pursuing Norwich City centre-forward Josh Sargent, who worked with Farke during their short time together at Carrow Road.
The Whites head coach was the manager who signed the USA international from Werder Bremen for the Canaries in the summer of 2021, but he was sacked in November, which meant that they did not work with each other for very long.
The reporter now claims that the 25-year-old marksman is on the club's radar and that they will have to battle one of their Premier League rivals to secure his services.
Speaking to The Boot Room, Bailey said: “Josh Sargent is still one that’s very much on their radar. Burnley are also very interested, they like him an awful lot. Leeds aren’t panicking, they’re letting the market come to them."
Norwich City's Josh Sargent celebrates scoring their first goal
Meanwhile, journalist Alan Nixon claims that Burnley are very keen to bring him to Turf Moor this summer, but they are not willing to pay the £20m asking price set by Norwich at this moment in time.
Why Leeds should sign Josh Sargent
Leeds should now push to sign the American striker before the end of the transfer window because he could be Farke's own version of Rodrigo in the Premier League next season.
josh sargent
Sargent, who writer Gab Sutton recently claimed "is the best ST in the Championship", is similar to the Spanish forward in the sense that he is a natural number nine who can also play in a myriad of positions.
The Norwich star has played on the right and left flanks, as a second striker, and as a number ten in his career, which means that Farke could use him in a host of different ways, just as Bielsa did with Rodrigo.
Sargent, who provided an assist against Northampton Town in his first pre-season outing on Saturday, is also a forward who has the potential to deliver goals and assist at the top level.
Since struggling, with two goals in 26 games, in the Premier League as a very young player in a poor side, the £20m-rated star has been a force to be reckoned with in the Championship.
Josh Sargent (Championship) 23/24 24/25
Appearances 26 32
xG 12.06 13.32
Goals 16 15
Minutes per goal 116 167
Big chances created 3 6
Assists 2 5
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, Sargent has outperformed his xG to fire in 31 goals in the last two seasons combined, which shows that he is a prolific scorer and an incredibly efficient finisher.
The Norwich star also won 46% of his duels, including 45% of his aerial battles, and that is why he may be viewed as an upgrade on Piroe as a starter, because the Dutch attacker only won 27% of his duels, and 21% of his aerial contests, in the same division.
This suggests that Sargent can bring the versatility of Rodrigo, the finishing efficiency of Piroe, all whilst also being an upgrade from a physical perspective, with the power and strength that he can provide on the pitch.
Therefore, Leeds must beat Burnley to his signature because of the potential he has to be a talismanic number nine for the Whites, as well as Farke's own version of Rodrigo next season.
Leeds-United-Raphinha Related
49ers could land Leeds' brand new Raphinha by signing £27m striker
Leeds United could seriously bolster their survival bid by signing this star this summer.