Leeds on brink of agreement to sell struggling player to sign 73-cap star

Daniel Farke’s focus this summer has been on strengthening Leeds United‘s spine, with the club moving early to add both at centre-back and in goal as they prepare to look upwards rather than over their shoulders in the Premier League.

Considerable work has also gone on behind the scenes shifting some of the deadwood left over from previous windows.

Pascal Struijk’s £20m departure to Brighton was the headline sale, but the exits of Illan Meslier and Karl Darlow in particular free up space and wages in a goalkeeping department that had become bloated, while Maximilian Woeber’s free departure continues the reshaping of a defence that Farke wants built in his own image this season.

That reshaping is now set to be completed with a new arrival at the back. Football FanCast understands a deal for Borussia Mönchengladbach centre-back Nico Elvedi is now as good as done, with Leeds expected to meet officially Gladbach’s €10m (£8.5m) price tag in the coming days and the player already agreeing personal terms at Elland Road.

The situation at Gladbach had looked to be heading in the opposite direction only weeks ago. Head coach Eugen Polanski even went as far as naming Elvedi vice-captain at the end of a recent training camp, a symbolic gesture designed to show the defender “you are important, we are counting on you” and encourage him to sign a new contract. Team-mate Kevin Diks echoed those sentiments publicly, saying he hoped Elvedi would stay.

Despite that, Elvedi has gone ahead and agreed personal terms with Leeds anyway – a clear sign of just how keen he is to make the move to Yorkshire. Farke, who worked with Elvedi during his time in German football, is understood to rate him highly, and the two sides are now expected to finalise the details of the deal next week.

The deal is also directly linked to Sebastian Bornauw’s situation, who struggled to make an impact last season as he registered just 433 Premier League minutes.

REUTERS/Andrew Couldridge

HSV Hamburg are closing in on an agreement to sign the defender from Leeds this summer, effectively setting up a swap of sorts. One centre-back heads out to the Bundesliga and clears the path, both financially and in terms of squad numbers, for another to come the other way from the German top flight.

Elvedi meanwhile would arrive with serious pedigree. The 29-year-old has made over 350 appearances for Gladbach since joining as a teenager back in 2015, and has been capped 73 times by Switzerland, forming part of their squad for this summer’s World Cup.

His versatility across the back line, capable of playing centre-back, right-back or left-back, gives Farke a defender who can slot in across multiple positions if needed, while his experience at the highest level of international football should offer a level head alongside fellow new signing Tarik Muharemovic, who arrives with bags of potential.

While the incomings and outgoings continue to dominate the headlines, one man already at the club could end up being one of Leeds’ most important performers this season. Sean Longstaff was excellent once again in pre-season against Manchester United. Leeds fans, read more on Longstaff’s pre-season preparations below!