Transfer expert reveals No. 10 Leeds expected to sign this past summer

This past summer, Leeds United was keen on signing a No. 10 for manager Daniel Farke. The Yorkshire side had been linked to various players, but there was one that they believed would be coming.

Leeds were heavily linked with Hungarian international Roland Sallai during the summer as he entered the final year of his contract with Bundesliga side Freiburg. However, their interest never turned into a deal, and Sallai made a late move to Turkish giants Galatasaray instead.

Reports at the time suggested that Galatasaray secured the 27-year-old attacking midfielder for around £5 million, making it a notable bargain.

Journalist reveals that Leeds thought they had signed Roland Sallai

Transfer expert Graeme Bailey has shed more light on the situation surrounding the failed pursuit of Sallai and his potential move to Leeds that fell through.

According to Bailey, the 49ers Enterprise was confident they had secured the deal in August, but they were disappointed to miss out on an attacking midfielder.

“There are ones that got away, clearly,” Bailey told LeedsUnited.news. “Roland Sallai, the Hungarian. They thought they had him so I think that was a bit of a blow for them. They thought they had him and there was a belief he could make a big impact in England, so that was a blow to them.

“He is a good player and at this level, I think he would’ve made an impact to be fair. He’s one they look back on where they will be really disappointed because they really thought they had him, and was coming in. He’s since moved onto Turkey so that’s one they were really disappointed by.”

This season, Brenden Aaronson has filled that No. 10 for Farke, but Leeds will likely attempt to sign that playmaker when the January window opens in a couple of months. Finding a midfielder who fits the German tactician’s tactics could be the decisive factor in this promotion push to the Premier League.

Failing to secure a No. 10 that Farke wants could come back to haunt the Whites this season and might keep them in the Championship for a third straight season.