An update has emerged on Leeds United and their plans to bolster their options in the middle of the park before the end of the summer transfer window…
What’s the latest Leeds transfer news?
Daniel Farke is eyeing a midfield signing to add to the four signings that he has already made so far; including Ethan Ampadu, Joe Rodon, Sam Byram, and Karl Darlow.
According to journalist Alan Nixon (via his Patreon site), the German head coach is targeting a swoop to sign Nottingham Forest central midfielder Lewis O’Brien before next month’s deadline.
The reporter’s article states that it would take a fee within the region of £10m to secure his services as Steve Cooper looks to trim his Premier League squad over the coming days.
It is also claimed that the Whites could iron out a deal that would see the former Huddersfield star arrive at Elland Road on loan with an obligation to buy if they are promoted to the top-flight.
How good is Lewis O’Brien?
The English machine is a terrific box-to-box midfielder who would come in as a big upgrade on the recently-departed Marc Roca, who failed to impress for Leeds in the Premier League last season.
O’Brien caught the eye on loan at DC United this year, after only being handed six league starts by Forest, as he averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.06 across 17 appearances for the MLS outfit.
The left-footed ace made 3.2 tackles and interceptions per match and won a whopping 75% of his aerial battles as he showcased his quality out of possession.
Whereas, Roca made 2.8 tackles and interceptions per game and won 59% of his aerial contests across 32 league outings for Leeds last term.
O’Brien, who was once dubbed an “exceptional” player by ex-boss Carlos Corberan, also created 1.4 chances per clash for his teammates during his time with DC United, which is more than any current Leeds player managed last season and 0.4 more per game than the former Bayern Munich man was able to produce.
The £10m-rated talent is also a Championship-proven performer who could hit the ground running at this level. He averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.00 over 43 games for Huddersfield during the 2021/22 campaign as they reached the play-off final.
During that season, the English maestro racked up three goals and three assists to go along with three tackles and interceptions combined per match, as he made an impact at both ends of the pitch from midfield.
O’Brien also excels at carrying his team up the field as the ex-Terriers star has averaged 2.56 progressive carries per 90 over the last 365 days, whereas Roca has only averaged 0.91 per 90 in that period.
This shows that the Leeds target would provide more quality in terms of being able to drive the team forward by using his dribbling ability to carry the ball, which would then put him in better positions to find his teammates at the top end of the pitch.
These statistics suggest that the 24-year-old dynamo would come in as a big upgrade on his fellow left-footed midfielder, who is now on loan at Real Betis, due to being able to cut out opposition attacks with defensive interventions more frequently whilst also offering more creativity in possession.
