Tarik Muharemovic on same path as Real Madrid star as Leeds United ambition revealed

Tarik Muharemovic has fought through hard times to end up at Leeds United.

The centre-back joined the Whites in a £34million deal from Serie A side Sassuolo in the summer.

He impressed Daniel Farke and Co. through his performances for Bosnia and Herzegovina at the World Cup, attracting interest across Europe.

Leeds made him a top transfer priority, bringing him to Elland Road after Pascal Struijk left to join Brighton.

The 23-year-old has started in all five of the Whites' Premier League games so far this season, and has formed a formidable relationship with the likes of Nico Elvedi and James Justin at the back.

Now, the Leeds star has revealed what it took for him to get to E20 after a losing fight at Juventus, which follows similar struggles that a Real Madrid star went through.

Tarik Muharemovic likened to Real Madrid man as Leeds admission made

Muharemovic started his professional career with Wolfsberger AC before moving to join Juventus.

He played all of his football for the Italian giants in their Next Gen setup, and never made an appearance for the senior team.

He later joined Sassuolo on loan and made his move permanent in 2025, before heading to Leeds a year later.

Speaking exclusively to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, who likened him to Real Madrid's Dean Huijsen, Muharemovic spoke about his journey and his ambition at Leeds.

Muharemovic said: "Defensively, I learned a lot during the years at Juve and Sassuolo."

Di Marzio then asked: "Juve is a club where some of the greatest defenders in history have played. How is it possible that two great talents like you and Huijsen, now at Real Madrid, were not given a chance?"

The Leeds defender responded: "This was not in my hands; they had better ideas, and they knew why. Now I'm really happy to be here, at Leeds, and in the Premier League, and not somewhere else.

"My focus is here, and I just want to forget those early years. I'm at Leeds United to prove who I am."

Joe Rodon is currently injured for Leeds, with Justin having to fill in at centre-back.

Jaka Bijol has also played an important part for the Whites early on, but Muharemovic has arguably been the best defender under Farke so far this season.

The statistics behind Muharemovic's form

Muharemovic has an average FotMob rating of 7.43 in the league so far.

He sits as the club's third-highest-rated player, narrowly behind Anton Stach with 7.46 and James Trafford with 7.49.

Muharemovic makes an average of 11.6 defensive contributions per game, with 2.20 of them being interceptions.

He also makes 7.40 clearances per 90, and is so far proving to be a duel winner both on the ground and in the air.

After only costing Leeds £34m, Leeds will feel like they got a big discount on the type of player they have actually signed.