How Leeds could sign a more exciting player than Mudryk before the deadline

Leeds United want to add another option to their array of wide players before the summer transfer window slams shut at the start of next week.

Harry Wilson, who joined on a free transfer from Fulham at the start of July, is the only attacking player who has been brought in by the Whites so far this summer.

The Whites had been preparing a new offer to sign Mykhailo Mudryk on a season-long loan from Premier League rivals Chelsea, but those talks have since stalled.

They want more guarantees over his playing time and a larger loan fee before they are willing to revive discussions with Leeds over a potential move for the Ukraine international.

Why Leeds cannot guarantee Mykhailo Mudryk game time

A loan deal where Leeds have to guarantee that the winger will play a certain percentage of the team’s matches in the Premier League is not viable because of the situation he is currently in.

Due to a doping ban, which has since been lifted after an appeal, the forward has not played a single competitive match at club level since a Conference League match against Heidenheim in November 2024.

It is almost impossible, therefore, for Leeds to know exactly how he will fare with the intensity and physicality of the Premier League this season after such a long spell on the sidelines.

Whilst he has not been injured, training is not the same as playing matches and Mudryk has no recent experience of playing competitive games, which means that he may not be at the level that they need him to be.

The Ukraine international, who scored five goals in his last 38 Premier League games for Chelsea, cannot be guaranteed minutes because the Whites simply cannot know how ready he is to play regularly at this time.

How Leeds can land a more exciting signing than Mudryk

Whilst a deal for Mudryk looks unlikely, for the reasons explained, the club are looking at another wide player who would be an even more exciting signing.

According to OnTheMinute, Leeds United have joined the race to sign Independiente del Valle winger Emerson Pata before the end of the summer transfer window.

The report claims that the 49ers are considering a swoop for the 22-year-old attacker to bolster Daniel Farke‘s squad, as they decide whether or not to make an offer for him.

It adds that Premier League rivals Sunderland and Ipswich are also keeping tabs on the Ecuadorian youngster and could challenge the Whites for his signature before the deadline.

REUTERS/Jason Cairnduff

Like Mudryk, Pata is a right-footed left winger who likes to drive at defenders and cut inside onto his favoured foot to deliver goals and assists from a wide position.

Whilst he is unproven in Europe’s major leagues, the young attacker would be an even more exciting signing than the Chelsea outcast because of his form for Independiente del Valle this year.

The forward has racked up 15 goals and ‘big chances’ created combined in 24 appearances in the league in 2026, after producing two goals and five assists in the 2025 campaign.

Pata, dubbed “incredible” by Diego Ordinola, has shown that he can offer a consistent threat as a goalscorer from a wide position in recent months, averaging a goal every 182 minutes in league action this year.

Mudryk, meanwhile, has never scored more than five league goals in a season and has only scored more than three goals in all competitions once in a single campaign in his senior career to date.

The 25-year-old forward has yet to prove that he can deliver consistently at the top end of the pitch, even when he has been available for selection, whilst Pata has been providing consistent quality this year in Ecuador.

Therefore, the 22-year-old talent would be an even more exciting, and more logical, signing for Leeds this summer, because there would not be as many concerns about his fitness and he could offer more quality at the top end of the pitch in the here and now.