Leeds United are on the hunt for a replacement for key holding midfielder Kalvin Phillips, who agreed a £42million move to Premier League champions Manchester City last week.
Phillips, who has spent the past 12 years at Elland Road after breaking through the club’s academy, is close to finalising his move to the Etihad Stadium and it will leave Whites boss Jesse Marsch with a major hole to fill in his midfield ahead of the 2022/23 campaign, where Leeds will want to improve on last season’s narrow escape of relegation.
Reports suggest that three players currently playing outside of England’s top-flight are on the shortlist for Marsch to sign in place of Phillips, one of which is currently plying his trade with one of Leeds’ Yorkshire rivals.
Sheffield United’s Sander Berge is reportedly of interest to Leeds, having missed out on a return to the Premier League with the Blades last month. The Norwegian international was signed by Paul Heckingbottom’s side in January 2020 from Genk and has made 66 appearances for United, 29 of which have been in the Premier League.
Recent comments from Berge’s Norway national team manager Stale Solbakken said that Berge should consider a move away from Bramall Lane and that he ‘does not belong in the Championship.’
YorkshireLive are however reporting that Berge has a £35m release clause in his contract after United signed him for £22m in January 2020, with the Blades set to be keen on making profit on the 30-time Norway international.
Who should Leeds United sign to replace Kalvin Phillips this summer? Have your say in the comments section.
That fee could deter Leeds from making a move to sign Berge from their neighbours however, with it being a fee not far short of what the club are set to be selling Phillips for this summer.
Another name linked with reported interest from the Elland Road club is RB Leipzig’s Tyler Adams. The 23-year-old American international has played under Leeds boss Marsch at both New York Red Bulls and Leipzig, playing 71 senior appearances under Marsch.
However, while Adams has been credited with interest as being a potential option to replace Phillips in west Yorkshire, a deal is unlikely to happen due to an ongoing legal dispute surrounding the transfer of Jean-Kevin Augustin, according to German outfit Kicker.
The 25-year-old, who spent the second half of the 2019/20 season on loan at Elland Road and helped the Whites win promotion to the Championship, signed a loan deal real that has been claimed to have had an obligation to buy clause in the deal, if Leeds got promoted. However, the loan was cancelled when the season was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic before Leeds went on to earn promotion when the season resumed.
The Yorkshire Evening Post have also reported that Red Bull Salzburg midfielder Mohamed Camara is an option that Leeds have considered pursuing and like Adams, Camara has played under Marsch during their time together in Austria.
Away from midfield reinforcements; Wolves winger Adama Traore, former Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster and PSV Eindhoven winger Cody Gakpo have all been linked with a move to Leeds, who could also lose star winger Raphinha this summer. Arsenal, Barcelona and Newcastle United are among the clubs who have been linked with the Brazilian winger.
