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Leeds United ‘moved on’ from signing Marseille striker Bamba Dieng – Dean Jones
Leeds United have “moved on” from Marseille striker Bamba Dieng after failing to sign him in the summer, according to journalist Dean Jones.
The Whites remained keen on signing a striker all summer to bolster the attacking unit for the rest of the campaign and agreed to a fee with the French club to bring the 22-year-old to Elland Road [L’equipe, 1 September].
However, Dieng had a last-minute change of heart and instead opted to sign for Nice before he failed his medical in a dramatic turn of events [Fabrizio Romano, 1 September]. He ended up staying at Marseille once the window had closed.
Jones, while talking to GiveMeSport, said that Leeds are now not interested in making another attempt to sign the striker in the future.
“I don’t think so,” he said. “There’s no sign really that they’re going to go back in for that one in January.
“I think they’ve moved on from it, and they’ll seek other forward options if they do need new life in January.”
Right decision
Leeds had a more than decent time in the recently concluded transfer window where they ended up signing six first-team players to really strengthen their squad.
However, one area where they definitely failed to strengthen as they would’ve liked was the striker department. After chasing several targets, they were forced to bring forward a deal for youngster Willy Gnonto instead of settling for nothing.
Even though Leeds might be in need of another striker come January, largely because of injury concerns surrounding Patrick Bamford, it would be the correct decision to not make a move for someone like Dieng.
The reason is clear and that is because there is no one bigger than Leeds. The club should only sign players who are willing to give their all for the shirt.
The way Dieng acted on deadline day where he snubbed Leeds’ approach and did not show up for the flight showed disrespect towards the club and they would be crazy to go back in for him.
Therefore, it is important that manager Jesse Marsch and sporting director Victor Orta must only prioritise bringing in players who are in sync with the values of Leeds United.
In other Leeds news, the Whites could reignite their interest in on Premier League winger if Daniel James leaves