Josip Brekalo hands in Wolfsburg transfer request amid Leeds United interest
Leeds United have been presented with a big chance to sign Croatia forward Josip Brekalo after he reportedly handed in a transfer request at Wolfsburg.
German news outlet Sport Buzzer reports that Brekalo, 23, has “made his request for a change” but Wolfsburg are yet to receive an offer for the former Stuttgart attacker.
Leeds have been regularly linked with Brekalo this summer with Calcio Mercato reporting earlier this month that the Whites and Atletico Madrid are joint-favourites in the race to sign the Croatia international, who’s also attracted the attention of Atalanta, Fiorentina and Inter Milan.
The Athletic’s Phil Hay has also suggested the Whites could launch a late-summer swoop to add more depth to Marcelo Bielsa’s options out wide.
Since the end of last season, Ezgjan Alioski and Pablo Hernandez have both left Elland Road, meaning Bielsa is one option lighter on either side of the pitch.
Helder Costa is also said to be attracting attention from Valencia [Phil Hay], meaning Bielsa’s pool of wingers could be depleted even further.
Brekalo is primarily a left-sided forward but he can also play on the right. According to stats by transfermarkt, the Croatian made 29 Bundesliga appearances last season with 22 of them on the left-wing and seven of them on the right.
Interestingly, Brekalo scored all seven of his league goals on the left-wing and assisted a goal just once. When he played on the right, he didn’t score but grabbed three assists, which suggests he’s more involved in build-up play when on the right.
Either way, Bielsa is a fan of versatility and if the chance arises for him to add a winger capable of playing on both wings to his squad, he’s bound to be happy with it.
Brekalo is reportedly available for a minimum of £15.5million while a loan-to-buy deal could also be on the cards [Calcio Mercato].
It seems like an affordable and straightforward deal to do, especially given the fact Brekalo wants to quit Wolfsburg and they are also seemingly open to a deal.
Leeds have signed just one new player for their first team so far this summer and while deals for a new goalkeeper and central midfielder should take precedent, adding in a new winger to strengthen Bielsa’s attacking options would also be sound business.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites have submitted a bid to sign this new central midfielder.