Leeds United are still hoping to land another midfielder before the Premier League transfer window slams shut at 11pm on Monday October 5th.

While Raphinha was the focus of much of Leeds United transfer news over the last couple days, Phil Hay has reported of Leeds’ desire to bring in a midfielder too.

Rodrigo De Paul had been the focal point of Leeds rumours for weeks, but Leeds are going to look elsewhere if they want to land an advanced midfielder to link play between the deep-lying central midfielders and their striker.

The Telegraph reported of interest in Atalanta midfielder Ruslan Malinovskyi, but Phil Hay has refuted such claims.

Hay, tweeting from his personal account, said, “Malinovskyi is someone they've had on the radar for the past couple of weeks. But like De Paul, it's never got to an advanced stage. Not expecting them to do Campana."

Levante midfielder Jose Campana, mentioned by Hay, clearly isn’t following Raphinha to Elland Road on Monday. Leeds have swung big in their search for another central player, but are yet to have any success.

There’s still time to strike a deal if Marcelo Bielsa identifies a player they should make a late push for.

Not Much Business Expected 

Leeds Live journalist Beren Cross took part in a question and answer session on Monday. He indicated Leeds are probably done for the window once the signing of Raphinha is wrapped up.

Cross said, “We’re told it will just be one through the door at Elland Road today barring any late progress with other targets.”

That seems to rule out a midfield signing, which leaves the Whites a bit thin in that department should Kalvin Phillips or Mateusz Klich suffer an injury.

However, Cross did suggest Leeds could recruit a midfield player from the Championship over the next few days.

“There are another 11 days to do business with EFL clubs, so would not role out an eight or a 10 coming in from the Championship if they’re good enough."

This opens up the possibility of a swoop for Norwich midfielder Todd Cantwell, who has been linked with a move to Elland Road over the last week or so. Said Benrahma could be an option too, though the Brentford star will not come cheaply.

Liverpool Left-Back Targeted

Leeds, per the Mirror, are looking to bring Liverpool left-back Yasser Larouci in on loan.

It is reported that Jurgen Klopp wants the youngster to go out and get some gametime as he is behind Andrew Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas in the Liverpool pecking order.

Several other teams are keen on Larouci, but Leeds could have an advantage as Liverpool would like him to remain in England. Others have thrived on loan at Elland Road, which could tempt Liverpool to send Larouci to work with Bielsa.


Credit for the main photo belongs to Oli Scarff / Pool via AP*

 

FIRST PUBLISHED: 5th October 2020

About the Author
By
Sam Cox

Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.

He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.

Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.

Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.