Leeds United staff jet out on Habib Diarra transfer mission amid ‘remarkable invasion’ in Strasbourg
Leeds United are one of a number of Premier League clubs to sent scouts to watch Strasbourg midfielder Habib Diarra, according to Sun journalist Alan Nixon.
Writing via his Patreon account on Sunday (21 May), Nixon reported that Aston Villa, Crystal Palace, Leicester, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham, West Ham and Wolves have also watched the 19-year-old prospect, who was born in Senegal but represents France’s Under-19s.
It is understood that the West Midlands duo of Villa and Wolves currently lead the race to sign the £20million-rated defensive midfielder.
Leeds are said to have sent “top people” to watch Diarra amid a “remarkable invasion of scouts” who watched him play last week and are set to watch him again on Sunday in Strasbourg’s Ligue 1 clash with Troyes.
Survival dependent
Leeds have no chance of signing Diarra if they are relegated from the Premier League.
Even if they stay up, the chances look slim with Villa and Wolves seemingly in pole position to sign the exciting young midfielder.
However, relegation would put paid to their chances of striking a deal for the £20million-rated sensation, who’s made 26 appearances for Strasbourg in Ligue 1 this season, scoring two goals and supplying three assists in the process.
According to transfermarkt, while Diarra is mainly a defensive midfielder, he’s versatile enough to play on the wings or in a more advanced central role.
Leeds definitely need to have an overhaul in the summer, regardless of whether they go down or not, and signing players to strengthen the spine of the squad makes sense.
However, they need to be careful that they’re not going in too strong with youthful signings because we could be losing a lot of experience in the next season or two.
Getting in players who are aged around 25 would be ideal.
In other Leeds United news, Gary Lineker has shared a conspiracy theory about the relegation battle in the Premier League.