Joe Rodon permanent transfer update as Tottenham price for Archie Gray shared at Leeds United
Leeds United look set to sign Joe Rodon on a permanent deal as Archie Gray heads the other way to Tottenham for £40million, according to Graham Smyth.
The Yorkshire Evening Post reporter wrote on X to say that the centre-back, who excelled on loan at Elland Road last season, would be returning permanently as talks progress for Gray’s transfer.
While the deal will be separate to that of Gray, both Rodon’s comeback to LS11 and Gray’s switch to the capital are “quite far down the line”, with a £40million fee agreed for the teenage star.
Joe Rodon transfer could soften blow of Archie Gray departure
Gray leaving the club this summer will never, ever go down as a popular move amongst the United fanbase, as the torch of his family legacy at Elland Road is dampened after just one season [Mail on Sunday, 30 June].
Farke is the first manager to really reap the benefits of having Gray’s supreme talents on the pitch, with the then-15-year-old first being brought into the first-team fold by Marcelo Bielsa in 2021.
Therefore, after two years of hype and build-up, Gray was finally given his chance by Farke – and delivered in spades, thus selling him to Tottenham barely 12 months later is a bitter pill to swallow.
However, it’s arguable that Rodon was the Whites’ best player last season – including Gray – thus bringing him back to the club and avoiding a bidding war with Premier League sides will certainly be welcome from Farke’s perspective.
Having Rodon marshalling things at the back could be the difference in achieving promotion next season, and in United’s financial position, that – more so than the development of generational young talents – has to be the number one priority.
In other Leeds news, a club on the continent have made a £5million bid for a wantaway Whites defender.
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