It is no secret – Leeds United were desperate to sign Charles De Ketelaere earlier in the summer.
However, despite offering Club Brugge a very respectable £34m, the young Belgian playmaker opted to join Serie A champions AC Milan.
Discussing the young midfielder’s transfer saga, which dominated a lot of the 2022 summer window, The Athletic’s Phil Hay revealed that help came from the owners of NFL team the San Francisco 49ers.
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Confirming the 49ers’ owners had promised to step in and stump up the funds required for De Ketelaere and agreed to remove the money from any future price they may pay to take control of the club.
“Charles De Ketelaere, was Leeds’ big transfer target in the recent window,” Hay said when answering a fans’ question.
“What Pete is asking is whether shareholder investment to fund that deal would have led to a transfer in equity that made 49ers Enterprises majority owner at Elland Road.
“It was one option for all concerned but another was that any money put in by 49ers Enterprises now came off the price of buying Leeds from Radrizzani further down the line.
“Radrizzani still seems and sounds very determined to retain majority control.”
