Two transfers agreed and two players come in from the cold
Leeds have completed deals with Swansea City for Dutch forward Joel Piroe, and with Bayer Leverkusen for midfielder Nadiem Amiri. Meanwhile Gnonto and Sinisterra could feature against Ipswich Town on Saturday after making their peace with the club.
Piroe has scored 41 goals for Swansea in the last two seasons in the Championship, and it was time for the south Wales club to cash in as the player had declined to extend his contract, which would have expired at the end of the season. Several clubs were competing for his signature, but it looks as though it is Leeds who have won the race.
We have needed another centre forward for quite a while, and we have been after Piroe since at least this time last year. Leeds are said to value the player in the region of £8m to £10m, and this afternoon transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported that the Dutchman was on his way to Leeds for a medical.
As I write the link to the announcement of his signing on the official website comes up with “Page not found!” which led me to worry if there was a last minute hitch. But I’m told the statement says “Leeds United are delighted to announce the signing of Swansea City striker Joel Piroe, subject to a work permit and international clearance. He has put pen-to-paper on a four-year deal, running until the summer of 2027.” Phew!
And earlier today we also agreed a deal to sign Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Nadiem Amiri, who is an attacking midfielder capable of giving us the kind of playmaking quality that we haven’t had since the days of Pablo. Yet at one stage the transfer seemed likely to fall through, with Sky Sports Florian Plettenberg tweeting that Amiri would rather go to Ligue 1 giants Olympique Marseille.
But the French club failed to reach an agreement with Leverkusen and then dropped their interest, so Amiri is likely to head for Leeds after all. I look forward to seeing him telling the official site in a few days time how much he is looking forward to playing for our great club in front of our magnificent fans, like our new signings always do.
And there are other names in the frame, with GiveMeSport’s Dean Jones reporting that our long-running pursuit of Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara is still active, and Genk winger Joseph Paintsil could be on the way. I’d rather have a proper left back than yet another winger, but I suppose you can’t have everything.
None of these transfers will be completed in time for Saturday’s trip to table-topping Ipswich, so it’s not surprising that Daniel Farke preferred to talk about the task immediately in front of him at this afternoon’s press conference. “We just speak about business once it’s done. My only focus is the game on Saturday, our players who are available and to make our injured players as fit as possible
”.
But he did have some good news to discuss, as Gnonto has now formally apologised for his antics over the last few weeks, and will now be considered for selection against the Tractor Boys. And Sinisterra is also now back in the fold after clearing the air with the manager this week. “With Luis there was a legal issue, a contractual issue, there was uncertainty about his contractual situation. This has obviously distracted him.”
“The situation is sorted, we have clarity about his contractual situation. I had a good chat with him and he’s in a much better place. He’s clear in his head, ready to go, ready to train and play with 100 per cent so we took him back into the dressing room. He’s important for my plans for the future. I am convinced we need his quality.”
Sinisterra’s release clause has now expired, but there could yet be an offer for his or Gnonto’s services in the next few days that meets the club’s valuation. This could be why we’ve enquired about Joseph Paintsil, just in case, but if Sinisterra and Gnonto are still with us as the window closes we will have plenty of options in the wide positions.
It certainly looks like we are getting better quality players under the new regime than most of Victor Orta’s signings, so despite the loss of so many players over the summer we should have a decent squad after all come the first week of September. It will take a bit of time to get the newcomers integrated with the rest of the team, but we should have a side that is capable of climbing the table and challenging for another promotion.
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