Leeds United must quickly bring Wilfried Gnonto transfer saga to an end, Daniel Farke needs replacements fast
Leeds United are reportedly willing to soften their stance on Wilfried Gnonto and the Whites must bring this gruesome transfer saga to its swift end so all parties can move on.
Transferdotcom journalist Jacque Talbot, taking to his personal Twitter account on Monday night (14 August) reported that the Italian international is pushing to join Everton with an expectation that the club will lower their price demands for the forward.
Online outlet TEAMtalk reported on 11 August that Leeds United had slapped a £25m price tag on Gnonto with Everton also having a second bid rejected (The Times, 11 August), but the Whites are now believed to be softening stance as they aim to bring this saga to an end.
Talbot tweeted: “Informed Wilfried Gnonto is continuing to push for a move to Everton and there is an expectation that Leeds will eventually lower their asking price – club have reneged their position.”
Leeds have had to deal with more summer drama in the past few days with both Gnonto and Colombian international forward Luis Sinisterra refusing to play for the club in order to seal their Elland Road exits.
Daniel Farke made Sinisterra “unavailable” against Birmingham on Saturday 12 August, similar to Wilfried Gnonto who has now missed the club’s last two fixtures with the attackers intent on leaving.
Leeds United have already had to deal with over 10 departures this summer, with Farke now possessing a damaging and much-depleted squad in his weaponry, and with two weeks of the window to go, these new exit sagas could prove incredibly costly.
Leeds United simply cannot afford to have unhappy players in their camp as it could certainly derail their Championship promotion ambitions while also affecting the morale around the first team and it’s best for all parties involved that both Gnonto and Sinisterra are moved on so the club can seek out replacements fairly swiftly.
The Whites have been linked with a whole host of potential replacements in recent weeks, with Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Graham Smyth reporting on 14 August that Leeds have tabled a bid for an unnamed striker to bolster their ranks.
Patrick Bamford, Georginio and Mateo Joseph are both injured, while there are question marks over the future of Gnonto, Sinisterra, and Crysencio Summerville while Jack Harrison has already left to join Everton on loan.
Leeds United are clearly intent on making their much-anticipated moves in the market but time is clearly running out and the quicker the club sort out exits for the likes of Gnonto and Sinisterra, the quicker and better Farke can plan out and refine his squad with a clear mind ahead of a crucial and gruelling Championship campaign.
So much is riding on these next two weeks at Elland Road.
In other Leeds news, another Premier League club have agreed to trigger the release clause of one key Elland Road figure.