Why Leeds want to sign a “similar player” to Lamine Yamal

Leeds United hit the jackpot on a number of their signings in the summer transfer window last year, as they built a squad that was capable of avoiding relegation from the Premier League.

The likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Jaka Bijol, James Justin, Anton Stach, and Noah Okafor, among others, proved that they were able to perform consistently in the top-flight.

Their most expensive signing of the window, and their most expensive signing since Georginio Rutter in January 2023, was Switzerland international Okafor.

The West Yorkshire outfit paid a fee of £18m to sign the attacker from Italian giants AC Milan, after he had a loan spell with Napoli in the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.

How Leeds hit the jackpot on Noah Okafor

Despite the money that was paid for the attacker, Okafor did not arrive at Elland Road as a slam dunk signing that was expected to be a guaranteed success.

In fact, there were question marks raised about the deal because he only scored one goal in 21 appearances in all competitions for Napoli and AC Milan combined in the previous season.

In two seasons in Italy, the left-sided attacker scored seven goals and provided five assists in 57 appearances in all competitions, but Daniel Farke saw potential in him and believed that he would be a good fit for his style at Leeds.

The Swiss star then went on to score more goals in the Premier League last season than he did in all competitions for AC Milan and Napoli combined in the previous two years, showing that the German head coach was right to take a risk on him.

Just as Leeds hit the jackpot on Calvert-Lewin, who only scored three goals in the Premier League for Everton before his move to Elland Road, the Whites struck gold on Okafor.

The club deserve credit for being willing to take risks on players who may not join full of confidence and off the back of impressive form, because it has allowed them to create an impressive team without breaking the bank.

The new Okafor could be on their way to sign for Leeds

Now, the Premier League side are looking at another target who fits that same criteria, and he could join to become the next version of Okafor in West Yorkshire.

Spanish paper Sport claims that Leeds United are one of a number of teams interested in a deal to sign Barcelona forward Roony Bardghji in the summer transfer window.

The report claims that the Whites have already made an approach to enquire about a potential move for the Sweden international, who could be on his way out of the Nou Camp ahead of next season.

It adds, though, that Sunderland, Brighton, and Aston Villa have also made approaches for the winger, who has been told that he will be allowed to leave Barcelona permanently or on loan this summer.

At face value, Bardghji looks like he is cut from the same cloth as Okafor because he only scored two goals in 28 appearances for Barcelona in the 2025/26 campaign.

Like the Swiss winger, the Leeds target failed to produce impressive numbers at the top end of the pitch for a European giant, but his goal output does not paint the full picture.

The 20-year-old forward was only given seven starts by Hansi Flick in LaLiga, hence why he did not rack up an outstanding goal tally, but his per 90 performance suggests that he has the potential to explode if given regular game time.

Interestingly, he ranks particularly highly among wingers for dribbles per 90, rubberstamping the comparison to Okafor, as well as explaining why Deco hailed him as “similar to Lamine Yamal”.

Bardghji, who journalist David Ornstein claims wants to be the “World’s best player” in the future, also showed promise in the Champions League for the Spanish giants, with one ‘big chance’ created and one assist in 103 minutes of action.

The Swedish youngster, who once scored eight goals in 27 matches for Copenhagen in the 2023/24 campaign, offered quality in the limited minutes that he was given behind the likes of Yamal, Ferran Torres, and Raphinha.

He could be given more opportunities to showcase his quality at Leeds, as Okafor was after his move from Milan, and that could help him to realise his potential and finally produce goals and assists on a regular basis, rather than in limited cameos.

Therefore, Bardghji could end up being Farke’s next version of Okafor by taking a risk on the youngster in the hope that he can thrive in a new environment in West Yorkshire.