Elland Road expansion
Facundo Buonanotte seems finished at Elland Road
Following a 14th-place finish in their first season back in the Premier League, Leeds United have wasted little time in shifting their focus towards strengthening the squad for next season.
Daniel Farke is keen for the club to be ambitious in the transfer market and wants several quality additions as he looks to build on the progress made over the past campaign.
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Work is already well underway behind the scenes, with Leeds’ recruitment staff having drawn up a list of targets and exploring potential deals ahead of what is expected to be a pivotal summer transfer window.
Leeds are in the market to bring in some creativity in the middle of the park, and the club could now have a chance to raid the Championship for a top-class solution.
The Whites are on red alert as Leo Scienza is ‘keen to move’
Leo Scienza has had a fantastic season at Southampton, scoring seven times and providing ten assists as the Saints were within a whisker of promotion to the Premier League.
He also scored three more goals for his former club, Heidenheim, in Germany before moving to Southampton last summer.
However, the Spygate scandal has badly damaged the club’s reputation, and Scienza is one of the several players who are considering leaving the club.
Former Premier League scout Mick Brown has warned players such as Scienza would leave the club amid interest from teams such as Leeds.
He claimed that the Brazilian is keen to leave the Saints after the club failed to secure promotion to the Premier League due to the Spygate scandal.
“Southampton are going to be in a lot of trouble”, Brown told Football Insider.
“Not only will they miss out on the money involved in getting promoted to the Premier League, but there are players in the squad who will want to move on.
“Somebody like Scienza, who has interest from top clubs like Leeds, it could be really hard to keep hold of him if that interest comes to anything.
“The player himself will be keen to make the move, and the club might not have a choice.
“This is the issue with remaining in the Championship because they may well get promoted next year, but a lot of the players won’t want to stick around.
“Scienza isn’t the only one, there are a few who Premier League clubs will be looking at, and if the money is right, then Southampton will struggle.”
Huge opportunity for Leeds
Southampton’s mess is a huge opportunity for Leeds as they now have a chance to sign a player of the quality of Leo Scienza in the upcoming transfer window.
Promotion to the Premier League would have almost ended any hopes of signing the Brazilian, and the Saints could have still held firm if not for the Spygate scandal.
Southampton are now under pressure, and Scienza could force the issue to ensure the Saints do not price him out of a transfer this summer.
This is a huge opportunity for Leeds to sign a player for a fee that could be less than his open market value due to the circumstances Southampton are in.