Leeds United midfielder set for deadline-day Championship move as medical planned — YEP 1/9/25
By Kyle Newbould
Another fringe player looks set to leave Leeds United this
summer.
Leeds United midfielder Darko Gyabi is closing in on a move
to Hull City, according to reports.
Gyabi is one of several fringe players who had been expected
to leave all summer, having spent the last 18 months on loan at Plymouth
Argyle. The YEP reported in June that Leeds would have been open to a sale,
with hope they could bring in between £3-4million for the midfielder.
Hull Live report Gyabi is closing in on a loan switch to the
MKM Stadium, with the 21-year-old due in East Yorkshire to undergo medical
tests imminently. The YEP’s understanding is that the midfielder will instead
leave Leeds on a permanent basis, although the exact structure of a deal is
unclear with Hull currently under restrictions which prevent them from paying
any kind of fee for a player.
Gyabi is into the final 12 months of his Leeds contract and
would therefore have been likely to become a free agent following any
prospective loan switch anyway. The 6ft 5ins midfielder joined the Whites in a
£5million deal back in 2022 but has made five first-team appearances for his
parent club.
A groin injury that required surgery in March ended Gyabi’s
2024/25 campaign early but he impressed at Home Park, with a number of
Championship sides thought to have been interested in his signature this
summer. And now Hull City look to have won that race. The Tigers are believed
to have fought off competition from elsewhere in the Championship, with Wrexham
and Watford among the clubs named in separate recent reports.
Hull are currently working under tight financial
constrictions and are therefore unable to bring in any fee-paying transfers,
with their business limited to loans and free agents. Leeds have already done
business with MKM Stadium chiefs this summer, agreeing to send Joe Gelhardt
back out on loan for the 2025/26 campaign.
Darko Gyabi exit follows other Leeds United fringe players
Like Gyabi, Leeds had hoped to get £3-4m for Gelhardt but
settled for a loan exit, with the young forward making clear his desire to
return to Hull, where he scored five goals in 20 appearances during the
second-half of last season. The Liverpudlian already has two more goals to his
name this campaign.
Sam Greenwood was the third 2024/25 Championship loanee
Leeds were open to losing permanently and that happened last week, with the
attacking midfielder joining Polish side Pogoń Szczecin in a deal worth around
£3.45m. The Whites have also sent Max Wober, Isaac Schmidt, Mateo Joseph and
Largie Ramazani out on loan, while Patrick Bamford’s contract has been
terminated a year early.
Leeds remain in the market to strengthen Farke’s squad
before this evening’s 7pm deadline, with particular focus on forward areas. So
far only three attacking signings have been made, two of which are free agents,
while Ramazani, Bamford, Joseph and Manor Solomon have all left.
Solomon is thought to remain available for loan while Leeds
are also admirers of Krasnodar attacking midfielder Eduard Spertsyan. But club
chiefs insist bodies will not be brought in purely to bolster numbers and with
so little time left to get deals over the line, they face a race to grant Farke
his wish of attacking reinforcements.
