Leeds U-turn on the cards for potential midfielder transfer after surprise development – report
Leeds United could change their stance on Norwich midfielder Todd Cantwell after the deal to sign Michael Cuisance surprisingly broke down, according to LeedsLive journalist Beren Cross.
PA journalist Nick Mashiter reported last week that Leeds were in talks over a potential £15million swoop for the Norwich 22-year-old but The Athletic journalist Phil Hay said that the Whites were playing down speculation linking them with the England Under-21 international.
Cross has reported the same but claims that Leeds could be forced into a U-turn on their stance on Cantwell after Cuisance reportedly failed a medical at the Yorkshire club.
Writing in a Q&A session on the LeedsLive website, Cross said: “Cantwell has been played down since last Sunday when news of the bid broke. That stance may change now Cuisance is off the table. Cantwell would give them until mid-October to get a deal done too with the domestic window.”
It’s an interesting point.
Leeds have until Monday to sign players from outside of the Premier League and the EFL but have until mid-October to sign Cantwell from Norwich.
Cantwell does not play in a similar position to Cuisance as he’s operated mainly on the left-wing for the Canaries while the Bayern Munich ace is more of a central midfielder.
But, Cantwell can play more centrally if he has to and Marcelo Bielsa has shown time and time again that he’s not a fan of playing players in just one position.
Take Stuart Dallas as the prime example. He played as right-back, left-back on the wings and as a central midfielder last season.
Cantwell might be seen as a left-winger by Daniel Farke but Bielsa could see him as a long-term central replacement for Spanish veteran Pablo Hernandez, who’s currently out injured and is getting on a bit in terms of his age.
Last year, ex-Norwich striker Chris Sutton compared Cantwell to former Porto, Barcelona and Chelsea star Deco on the Daily Mail website.
We wouldn’t mind someone as good as the Portuguese hero at Elland Road and Cantwell has shown all the signs that he has a big future ahead of him.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites have tabled a bid of over £13.5million for this midfielder.