Georginio Rutter set for potential Leeds United stay as transfer news confirmed
Leeds United star Georginio Rutter could be set to stay at Elland Road after his former club TSG Hoffenheim agreed a deal for Wout Weghorst.
German newspaper the Frankfurter Rundschau reported on 4 August that the Frenchman could be heading back on loan to the Bundesliga club after signing for the Whites for a club-record £35.5million fee in January.
But that now seems unlikely after Sky Sports journalist Fabrizio Romano tweeted on 8 August that Hoffenheim agreed a deal with Burnley to sign Dutch forward Wout Weghorst on loan.
It will come as a relief to many at Leeds that it doesn’t look like they will be losing yet another one of their big-money signings following the club’s relegation down to the Championship.
There has been a mass exodus already at Elland Road as several first-team players have either decided to exercise clauses in their contracts or just push for a move elsewhere.
Robin Koch, Max Wober, Brenden Aaronson, Rasmus Kristensen, Marc Roca and Rodrigo have all left the club as all of them – barring the Spanish forward – were desperate to continue playing at the highest possible level.
The German newspaper reported that Rutter was unhappy in West Yorkshire and was looking to secure a move away from the club.
The signing of Weghorst on loan, however, surely means Hoffenheim won’t be looking to dip into the loan market and bring in another forward.
With the 21-year-old’s history at the Bundesliga side, that seemed the most likely move for him after there hasn’t been too much interest in signing him this summer.
That is probably down to Leeds either wanting to recoup a large amount of the hefty transfer fee they paid for him just seven months ago or because they would command a significant loan fee to consider letting him leave.
It hasn’t been the best few months for the Frenchman since joining Leeds in January, having not found the back of the net and just adding one assist in his 13 games for the club.
Looking back at the signing, it was quite foolish to pay such a big transfer fee for him after he scored a modest 11 goals in 64 games for Hoffenheim.
But if he does stay this summer, which now seems likely, then he will have a chance to redeem himself and go some way towards proving he was worth the money.
The Whites desperately need one of their strikers to step up this season as they aim to challenge for promotion back to the Premier League and perhaps it could be Rutter.
In other Leeds United news, a defender could be heading out on loan to the Bundesliga.