Leeds United in hunt to sign Huddersfield Town midfielder Lewis O’Brien
Leeds United are in the hunt to sign midfielder Lewis O’Brien from Yorkshire rivals Huddersfield Town, according to Alan Nixon.
The Sun journalist made the claim on his personal Twitter profile on Sunday morning [04/07/21].
Nixon wrote: “Leeds are looking for a midfielder with legs. They may have found one on their doorstep with Lewis O’Brien at Huddersfield. They have joined clubs taking a keen interest. He runs all day.”
Under-the-radar targets
Many were expecting Leeds to make a big splash in the transfer market after a brilliant return to the Premier League last season where they secured a top-10 finish.
High-profile signings like Rodrigo and Raphinha were brought in last summer for considerable sums and similar moves were expected to be made before the new Premier League campaign gets underway in August.
However, it’s been a rather quiet beginning to the window for the Whites, with only 18-year-old Amari Miller bought from Birmingham City, aside from the permanent capture of Jack Harrison, a deal which had been expected for a long time.
Miller will likely go into the Under-23s side, as will Wigan Athletic midfielder Sean McGurk, who is inching closer to a move to Elland Road.
The only high-profile signing that looks to be close is Junior Firpo from Barcelona, and it has been fairly quiet apart from that.
O’Brien certainly isn’t a name that jumps out of the page, and being a Championship regular at the age of 22 he certainly won’t be thrown into the Under-23s side.
As such, this suggests that Marcelo Bielsa is still keen to recruit in a similar manner to how he has before – signing young, hungry players with a point to prove.
O’Brien looks to fit that bill, and Nixon’s reference for him, that he can “run all day”, plus Huddersfield’s “energetic” description of him, sounds like it’s perfect for Bielsa’s demanding and high-intensity football.
Former Leeds coach and current Terriers boss Carlos Corberan also said that O’Brien has “amazing skills” [PinkUn].
He’s not a prolific goalscorer, netting just three times in the Championship last season, but Bielsa may be lining him up as a Mateusz Klich alternative as he looks to manage his minutes more carefully going forwards.
O’Brien was also named as vice-captain of Huddersfield last week, so he clearly has a degree of leadership within his game as well.
In other Leeds United news, the Whites are on the verge of signing this English midfielder after negotiations over a fee.