England under-18 attacker Sonny Perkins has signed a contract and completed his medical to become a Leeds United player, according to Fabrizio Romano.
The 18-year-old rejected professional terms at West Ham United and is set to be announced as Leeds’ seventh summer signing, claims Romano.
Leeds will be due to pay a compensation fee to West Ham due to his age, despite Perkins being a free agent. Perkins has also attracted attention from Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur, while West Ham released a fiery statement in the wake of his departure, criticising the player’s representatives.
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The statement read: “The club is disappointed with Perkins’ representatives and strongly believe he was approached to sign for another club which led to him asking to be released from his scholarship at West Ham United.
“West Ham United take this matter very seriously – we believe the rules and structures in place at the Football Association and Premier League should be upheld at times. The club will be making no further comment.”
Perkins was plucked from Leyton Orient’s youth set-up and joined the Hammers at U14 level in January 2019. He scored 12 goals in 21 appearances for the U23 side in the Premier League 2 last term and also played his first minutes for the first team.
He made his Europa League bow from the bench in a 2-0 win at Rapid Vienna and was presented with his first start in their next European match against Dinamo Zagreb. He made his only Premier League appearance for the Hammers with a three-minute cameo from the bench in January’s 3-2 defeat against Leeds at the London Stadium.
Perkins has represented England at U15, U16 and U18 level respectively – scoring four goals in 10 matches for the latter.
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