Leeds submit big offer to sign Premier League star

After securing safety with ease last season in the Premier League, Leeds United boast a lot of representation at the 2026 World Cup.

Indeed, Gabriel Gudmundsson started for Sweden as they were humbled 5-1 by the Netherlands on Saturday evening, while Ao Tanaka fared much better for Japan, as the Leeds midfielder helped the Samurai Blue to a convincing 4-0 victory over Tunisia.

There is also, of course, Noah Okafor, who is a part of Murat Yakin’s Switzerland camp, with Leeds fans cheering on all their beloved players from afar.

Despite the World Cup dominating everyone’s attention at the moment, the Whites appear to have several targets already in mind this summer, as Daniel Farke goes about improving his squad gradually, so they don’t suffer from a sophomore slump next season.

Leeds submit bumper offer for Premier League star

Leeds’ list of summer targets shows a team that won’t be content with just making up the numbers next season in the Premier League.

Rather, they’ll want to improve on a 14th-place finish, with a spot in the top half of the table perhaps within their reach, especially if they land the likes of Julian Brandt this off-season.

It has been widely reported that Farke and Co are keen on the Borussia Dortmund playmaker, with the move a very ambitious free-transfer swoop, as an unnamed Champions League outfit are also allegedly in the hunt for the skilful German.

It’s not just the pursuit of Brandt that is showing Leeds in an ambitious light, with Football Insider reporting that the West Yorkshire side has submitted what is described as a ‘big’ contract offer to Harry Wilson to try and tempt him to Elland Road.

Like Brandt, the Welsh winger would be joining on a free transfer deal, but that doesn’t mean he will be entering the building on the cheap, with Leeds preparing to offer the Fulham ace a hefty pay increase to try and snap up his in-demand services, over Aston Villa and Everton.

Landing the soon-to-be free agent would be a significant statement of intent from Leeds heading into the brand new Premier League campaign, with the Wrexham-born wizard arguably a bigger talent than his Dortmund counterpart.

Why Wilson is a bigger talent than Brandt

This isn’t to say that Brandt would be a poor signing.

In fact, landing the 30-year-old would be a very clever and shrewd pick-up, as his goal and assist return last season in the Bundesliga of seven goals and five assists means he’d likely be cut out for the pressures of the English top-flight, subsequently giving Brenden Aaronson plenty of competition in the attacking midfield spots.

Yet, when it comes to Premier League-proven attackers who could take Leeds to the next level, Wilson is arguably the pick of the bunch, and on a free transfer, it’s a no-brainer to try and accelerate a deal while he is available and hesitant on penning an extension with the Cottagers.

Last season, Wilson left Brandt in the dust when looking at their respective league numbers, with the 29-year-old, who is constantly capable of a moment of magic from nothing, helping himself to a sublime 17 goal contributions from 36 top-flight outings, next to the German’s slightly lesser 12.

Brandt wasn’t a million miles off this amount during the 2024/25 season in the Bundesliga for The Black and Yellow, with five goals and ten assists amassed.

Still, the 48-time Germany international has only ever known the comfortable environment of his homeland during his club career to date, with it not guaranteed that he would set the Premier League instantly alight on his arrival.

With Brandt prone to an injury niggle, too, it’s clear that Wilson would be better suited to Farke and Co at this moment in time, as they strive to consolidate themselves as a Premier League outfit, with the Fulham number eight further trumping Brandt in many different areas of their respective attacking games last season.

He was even noted as being the division’s “form” player last campaign by Sky Sports’ Dougie Critchley, with Leeds sending shockwaves through the entire league, if they were to secure the services of the much-talked-about attacker for £0.

Leeds have also been stung in recent times when shopping in the German market, but Brandt would love to prove that he’s an exception to this rule, with the Whites looking to power ahead this summer transfer window sooner rather than later to land the statement signature of Wilson, among other high-profile additions.