Kaveh Solhekol details Ben Brereton Diaz clause at Blackburn with Leeds United keen
Leeds United are unlikely to sign Ben Brereton Diaz from Blackburn this month amid a clause in his contract at Ewood Park, according to Kaveh Solhekol.
On 11 December, The Sun reported that the Whites are in pursuit of the 22-year-old goal machine as Victor Orta looks to bolster Marcelo Bielsa’s striker options.
As it stands, Brereton Diaz is in the final six months of his contract at Blackburn but Sky Sports News reporter Solhekol says there’s an option for that deal to be extended by an extra year.
As quoted on Sky Sports’ Transfer Centre on 4 January [07:39pm], Solhekol said: “Blackburn don’t want to sell Ben Brereton Diaz despite huge interest in the player. They’re doing so well at the moment, they’re second in the Championship and have been on a brilliant run.
“They’re trying to get back into the Premier League, and Brereton Diaz has been in incredible form, he’s scored 20 times already this season and has been linked with a number of Premier League clubs like Leeds and Newcastle.
“But the Venkys, the owners of Blackburn, want to keep the squad intact to give Tony Mowbray the best chance of being promoted. Brereton Diaz has six months left on his current deal, but Blackburn do have an option for another year.”
No chance
Blackburn are able to protect their most valuable asset due to that clause in his contract which enables them to extend his stay by an extra 12 months.
And it’s a good job from their point of view too because if his contract was up this summer, they would surely have no choice but to sell the Championship goal machine.
Brereton Diaz, who’s scored three goals in nine appearances for Chile since his international debut in June 2021, has netted 20 times in 25 league appearances for Blackburn this season.
Mowbrays’ side are sitting pretty in the Championship promotion race with Rovers currently in second place, ahead of Fulham and West Brom.
Selling Brereton Diaz would be disastrous for Blackburn’s chances of winning promotion, which would surely bag the club more money than it would selling the striker.
If they don’t go up this season then we’d expect the ex-Nottingham Forest striker to move on this summer as he’ll be into that final year of his contract then.
Leeds may want to swoop in then.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites could soon make a bid to sign this box-to-box midfielder.