MOT View: Forward tipped to emulate Messi is most exciting Leeds transfer link in years
It is not every day when you see your team linked with a player who is tipped to emulate Lionel Messi.
Leeds United are reportedly keen on signing Velez Sarsfield forward Thiago Almada, with Al Aire Libre claiming the 19-year-old is one of a number of Argentine players who Marcelo Bielsa is looking to land after leading the Whites back to the Premier League.
Since then, Almada has spoken out to reveal that he would like to be managed by Bielsa [TyC Sports] and there are a lot of reasons for Leeds fans to be excited by this player.
The Manchester Evening News has previously reported that Almada has been likened to Barcelona superstar Messi amid links with Manchester United.
It is understood that Almada is just 5ft 7 tall which gives him a low centre of gravity and the ability to manipulate the tightest of spaces on the football pitch.
Stats by WyScout show that this season, Almada has averaged 5.9 dribbles per 90 minutes of league action, completing 44.2 per cent of them. He’s also completed an impressive 80.5 per cent of his passes and 40.5 per cent of his shots have hit the target with an xG of 0.22.
He’s very much a proper number ten, with the Guardian saying that the teenager “always wants the ball, no matter who he is playing with or against”.
With Leeds back in the Premier League for next season, they could do with someone in their side who has the ability to produce magic game after game.
Right now, the player who is most like Almada in Bielsa’s squad is Pablo Hernandez but at the age of 35, it is fair to say the Spaniard does not have much left in the tank and a young understudy would be perfect for the Whites.
Almada’s release clause is reportedly £22million, which should be affordable for Leeds United now they have opened themselves up to the riches of the Premier League.
But this is a player who aspires to follow in the footsteps of Carlos Tevez, has been tipped to follow in the footsteps of Messi and is bound to be on the radar of top clubs across the world.
He is one of the most exciting players we’ve seen linked with Leeds in a very long time, which suggests to us that this is too good to be true.
In other Leeds United news, Bielsa wants this 15-goal South American striker.