'Absolutely no panic' - Leeds United chief explains transfer situation for remainder of Premier League summer window - YEP 10/8/21
Only an 'exceptional opportunity' to sign a player who improves Marcelo Bielsa's squad will bring Leeds United back to the transfer market this summer.
By Graham Smyth
The Whites are comfortable with the squad as it stands, despite
it being known since before the window opened that they were lining up central
midfield and wing targets.
Chief executive Angus Kinnear says there is no panic as the
summer window enters its final three weeks and although he would not rule it
out entirely, he's not anticipating much in the way of transfer business.
"If I was going to bet on it I would suggest there'll
be little movement between now and the end of the window but if you had asked
me at the same time last season I would have said there wouldn't be any
movement and then we brought in Raphinha," he told The Square Ball
podcast."It can change and the strategy is very much to be ready but it
has to be an exceptional opportunity and a player who moves the team
forward."
The latest name linked to Leeds is Huddersfield Town's Lewis
O'Brien and Kinnear says there is currently no movement on that deal. The YEP
understands the two clubs were unable to reach an agreement on a valuation for
the midfielder after initial talks and no further negotiations have taken
place.
Leeds are still looking for potential additions who could,
as Raphinha did, come in late in the window and make a significant impact, but
will not sign players in any kind of desperation.
"I think 'sit and wait' is probably unfair on the guys,
it's a very active process, they're speaking to clubs, agents, monitoring the
market place, trying to identify when an exceptional opportunity arises,"
said Kinnear.
"But to reassure everybody, there is absolutely no
panic at the training ground. I think Marcelo, Victor and Andrea and the team
as well are very comfortable going into the first games with the team we had
last season that served us so well, with the addition of Junior at left-back.
But we're always on the lookout and we're very good at taking the opportunities
when they arise.
"The trading strategy that generated such great value
with Robin, Diego, Raphinha and Rodrigo, we're not going to move away from
that. There's going to be no panic buying. The strategy from a year ago was to
get it right last summer, we think we did get it right last summer, we think
we've built a team which could last two years in this league, particularly when
we overlay the fact we've been able to resist any offers for the marquee
talent."