Leeds United set to suffer Fabio Carvalho contract blow
The reported Leeds United pursuit of Fabio Carvalho may have hit a stumbling block after TEAMtalk’s claim that he is set to sign a new long-term deal at Fulham.
The Daily Mail reported last month that Leeds, alongside Premier League rivals West Ham and Norwich City, were keeping tabs on the 19-year-old with the Portuguese-born attacker at a contract impasse with Fulham.
Carvalho’s current Craven Cottage contract expires in 2022 and thus he will be free to leave the west London side, though his next club would be required to stump up development fees.
However, Leeds and co have suffered a setback in the chase for the England youth international as teamTALK’s report claims “confidence is high” at Fulham as they bid to tie their teenage sensation to fresh terms after a superb start to the 2021/22 Championship season.
Carvalho has scored three goals and supplied an assist in five league outings so far to help the Cottagers climb to first place in the Championship.
Big season ahead
Signing a long-term contract will offer Carvalho some security in his budding football career while from the club’s perspective it will protect his value and ensure he is not stolen away at a reduced rate next summer.
Had he departed upon his contract expiry next year, Fulham would have been limited in terms of the remuneration they could have expected to receive.
But if the teenager puts pen to paper on a long-term contract and continues on his current trajectory, Fulham can expect to see his value soar.
That’s not to suggest they will necessarily cash in on him next summer.
Fulham will be targeting automatic promotion from the Championship this season, and thus he could be playing first-team football for them in the Premier League by this time next year.
But Leeds might be hoping they miss out on and that he starts to yearn for a move in order to continue his progression.
In other Leeds United news, Gary Neville is blown away by this major Whites development this week.