Why Pavel Sulc to Leeds United talk will only ramp up after Lyon announcement

Leeds United fans may have been given extra reason to believe a move for Lyon midfielder Pavel Sulc is on the cards.

MOT Leeds News carried a report on Saturday that Leeds have opened talks with Lyon over a deal for Sulc.

The Czechia international, who featured three times in this summer's World Cup, is said to be available for around £21.3million.

That can be considered a more-than-reasonable price given Sulc was directly involved in 25 goals in 42 games last season.

The links have come out of the blue, but there is further reason to suggest something could be happening.

That is amid an update shared out of Lyon on Saturday evening.

Pavel Sulc mysteriously absent from Lyon squad

Sulc is part of Lyon's 26-player squad for their pre-season camp in Germany.

However, he was not part of the squad for Saturday's friendly against Slavia Prague.

The reason for this was not given officially by Lyon, who made three changes for the contest.

However, Lyon news outlet Olympique-et-Lyonnais.com, which has 67,500 followers on X, reported Sulc missed out because he felt a "minor issue".

That may well be the innocent truth behind his absence, but the timing will also raise eyebrows among the French club's fanbase.

What can Sulc bring to Leeds?

Sulc is used predominantly as a central attacking midfielder for Lyon, but he can also play as a striker and out wide.

The 25-year-old scores and assists regularly, which would make him an instant upgrade on Brenden Aaronson.

Daniel Farke would also have the option of using him on the left if needed.

Speaking in August 2025, Viktoria Plzen boss Miroslav Koubek said of Sulc, prior to his move to Lyon: "He's been absolutely amazing for us for the last three years in attack."

For context, Sulc outperformed Harry Wilson and Aaronson last season, albeit with most of his appearances coming in Ligue 1.

Factor in his European experience and you can see why this move makes total sense for the Whites, who are fine tuning their squad ahead of the new campaign.