Bayer Leverkusen player confirms Leeds wanted to sign him on loan in January
Leeds United were linked with a number of strikers in the January transfer window after Arsenal recalled Eddie Nketiah from his loan at Elland Road.
Che Adams was widely reported to be Marcelo Bielsa’s top target while Andre Gray and Billy Sharp’s names also popped up before the Whites eventually landed Jean-Kevin Augustin on loan from RB Leipzig.
But it seems that Augustin wasn’t the only Bundesliga striker Leeds looked at signing on loan with Bayer Leverkusen forward Joel Pohjanpalo revealing that the Yorkshire club tried to sign him on a deal until the end of the season.
Pohjanpalo, 25, barely played for Leverkusen in the first half of the campaign, appearing just once in the Bundesliga as he battled against injuries.
He eventually signed on loan for Bundesliga.2 club Hamburg in January and has since been lighting up the scoresheet by netting eight times in 11 matches for the promotion hopefuls.
In a recent interview, the Finland international has revealed that Leeds could have instead benefitted from his goalscoring run at Hamburg.
“As a place, Hamburg met the criteria I wanted. Another strong option was Leeds United in the English Championship. However, I knew that the loan transfer would be a short time,” Pohjanpalo told Finnish newspaper HS.
“[Leeds] was a strong option. In that alternative, it was exciting that the club was close to rising to the Premier League. Leverkusen wanted me to stay close to them. HSV and Leeds both play in more or less the same way.”
In hindsight, Pohjanpalo might have been a better option for Leeds than Augustin, who has suffered another hamstring injury in the last week and could miss the rest of the season.
Augustin’s played just three times for the Whites with all three of his appearances coming as a substitute.
Pohjanpalo had his injury issues in the first half of the campaign and that could have contributed towards Leeds going for Augustin instead of him.
But there’s no denying which striker is the fittest right now and is the one who is scoring the most goals.
Remember Pohjanpalo’s name. Maybe Victor Orta will target him again in the summer when he returns to Leverkusen.
In other Leeds United news, these promotion hopefuls have confirmed a positive coronavirus test.