YEP 13/7/21 The three goalkeepers on Victor Orta's Leeds United goalkeeper shortlist - La Liga stopper, Vålerenga youngster and Newcastle United's Freddie Woodman
Leeds United have made approaches for a trio of goalkeepers this summer in their search for a Kiko Casilla replacement.
By Graham Smyth
Victor Orta hopes to be able to conclude a deal quickly for
a player who can compete with and provide back up to Marcelo Bielsa's first
choice stopper Illan Meslier, after Casilla secured a season-long loan move to
Elche CF in La Liga. His time at Leeds appears to be over, although there are
two years remaining on his contract.
The director of football's search for a replacement was
narrowed to three candidates, all of whom have senior league experience, namely
Dani Cárdenas, Kristoffer Klaesson and Freddie Woodman.
Cárdenas, 24, plays for Levante UD in La Liga and last
season made eight top flight appearances and played five times en route to the
Copa Del Rey semi-final.
He joined Levante in 2014, having spent time with his
hometown club Barcelona and RCD Espanyol, and made his first team debut in
November last year although spent the majority of the campaign as back up to
the more experienced Aitor Fernández.
His contract is due to expire next summer.
Klaesson, 20, is a player Leeds first made enquiries about
in 2019. Despite the Norwegian's tender years he has racked up 54 top flight
appearances with Eliteserien outfit Vålerenga, who sit third after 13 games of
their 2021 campaign, which traditionally runs from March to November but
started in May this year due to Covid-19 restrictions.
He has played every minute in the league this season and
missed a single game in 2020 due to suspension. His contract runs until
December 2022.
In 2020 Vålerenga sporting director Jørgen Ingebrigtsen
confirmed to Oslo daily newspaper Dagsavisen that Leeds were keen on the
youngster.
“Leeds made a specific inquiry about what our plans were
with Kristoffer," he said.
"The first conversations with them were in autumn last
year. We said what you see now, that this is a player we didn’t want to sell.
We had faith that he could become the first [choice] keeper at Vålerenga fairly
quickly, and he is at the moment. They had a sense of understanding. The talks
with them were very good.”
Newcastle's Woodman, meanwhile, was first linked with the
club in 2018 and popped up on the radar again this summer. The 24-year-old
arrived at St James' Park in 2013 but the vast majority of his experience has
come in loan spells, with Aberdeen, Crawley Town, Kilmarnock and Swansea City,
with whom he has spent the last two seasons as their number one.
The 2020/21 Championship season saw Woodman and the Swans
reach the play-off final, before defeat to Brentford at Wembley Stadium.
Woodman, who represented England at Under 21 level, featured
twice against the Whites in the 2019/20 second tier campaign, keeping a clean
sheet in a 1-0 win at Elland Road and losing 1-0 at home in a game that all-but
sealed Leeds' promotion to the Premier League. He is contracted to 2023 and has
been linked with both a return to Swansea and a move to Arsenal this summer.
With Meslier in place alongside both 18-year-old prospect
Dani van den Heuvel and Elia Caprile, who turns 20 next month, there is no
immediate urgency when it comes to the addition of a keeper but Leeds would
like to tie up a deal in time for the start of their pre-season fixtures.
