More Leeds United transfer news means yet another twist in the Rodrigo De Paul saga. There are mixed messages coming out of Italy about the Udinese star at the moment.
On Sunday, Corriere della Sera claimed Leeds are ‘one step away’ from completing the signing of De Paul.
This comes only a day after other reports in Italy suggested De Paul could remain with Udinese for the 2020-21 campaign and that a Leeds transfer was not close.
The Corriere della Sera update gives Leeds fans hope that an announcement could come soon. The report says there were developments over the last few hours, implying a major breakthrough in negotiations which have been underway for several weeks.
It’s stated Udinese will receive a few of €30 million with bonuses. It’s not clear how much those bonuses would be worth, but it’s reasonable to expect several million in addition to the main fee considering what Udinese have been demanding for De Paul.
These claims are backed up by La Repubblica, who report that Leeds have won the race of De Paul, ahead of several of Italy’s best clubs.
Juventus, both Milan clubs and Roma have all been linked with De Paul, but according to La Repubblica, he has chosen to move to Elland Road to join up with Marcelo Bielsa’s side.
Leeds still have plenty of time to get a deal done for De Paul with the transfer window open until Monday October 5th.
With Pablo Hernandez suffering an injury in the warm-up on Saturday, though, the Whites will be keen to get De Paul on board sooner rather than later.
Leeds Rival Milan For Starlet
Leeds have shown an interest in Toulouse midfielder Manu Kone according to RMC Sport.
The reports claim Marcelo Bielsa hasn’t given the green light on a potential deal for Kone, however, and Leeds are not the only team who could make a move.
Italy’s sleeping giants AC Milan are thought to be keen on Kone too.
The 19-year-old clearly has very high potential, and could be a target for several other clubs around Europe. Leeds haven’t committed to a deal as yet, but pushing a transfer through could work in their favour if they can avoid a bidding war.
Leeds recently missed out on Conor Gallagher, and Kone could be their alternative to the Chelsea midfielder, who is heading to West Brom on loan.
Toulouse would demand a fee in the region of £14 million for the starlet, though, a sizeable outlay for Leeds after spending heavily already this window.
This would be a gamble for Leeds, particularly at that price, but the Whites have shown they’re not afraid of bold moves in the transfer market.
Credit for the main photo belongs to Manu Fernandez / AP Photo*
