Leeds United in transfer race with West Ham and Nottingham Forest to sign Salernitana striker Boulaye Dia

Leeds United are reportedly in a transfer race with West Ham and Nottingham Forest to sign Salernitana striker Boulaye Dia.

According to Italian media outlet Gazzetta Dello Sport, Danilo Iervolino, the president of the Serie A side is likely to exercise the option to buy the Senegal international permanently from Villarreal - the team that's loaned him out currently.

After that, Salernitana are expected to put him on the shop window with a fee in the region of £13.7million being enough to lure the 25-year-old away.

Worth it?

Leeds desperately need a striker and let's make no bones about it, they needed one over the summer.

It was a disastrous window in terms of getting a number nine over the line and after plenty of rejections and last-minute twists, they ended up signing Willy Gnonto.

While signing a full Italy international who's got his best years ahead of him is not a bad thing, he is only 18 and has not experienced football compared to the Premier League.

That's why he's not yet got a start and until the Liverpool game, did not even make his debut.

When it comes to Dia, he's been a professional for many years and has played in Europe's top-five leagues.

While the Serie A is relatively easier than the Premier League top flight, it's far from a tougher challenge than Gnonto previously experienced.

In that price range, signing a goal scorer in his mid-20s is quite a good deal and if they were willing to take the punt on Bamba Dieng on deadline day, they wouldn't mind Dia.

He's bagged five goals this season and provided two assists in 11 league appearances and those are decent numbers for a side not expected to win the majority of their games.

In other Leeds United news, a Sky Sports pundit has delivered Jesse Marsch’s “sack” verdict after what he heard last month.