Leeds United are heading into the second half of the season in pretty good shape. Daniel Farke’s side are top of the Championship table, three points clear of Burnley and Sheffield United, and are undefeated in seven games.
To ensure they can keep up that form between now and the summer and seal a return to the Premier League, the Whites are reportedly getting ready to raid the transfer market in January, and have been linked with several big names.
Among them is Borussia Monchengladbach’s Nico Elvedi and RC Lens defender Abdukodir Khusanov, who is also thought to be attracting interest from Manchester City, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur.
To fund moves for those players, Leeds will have to raise some money by selling some of their current crop. With that in mind, we have listed six players who could leave Elland Road this month.
1
Joe Gelhardt
Linked with: Rangers, Portsmouth, Stoke
Since joining Leeds in 2020 from Wigan Athletic, Joe Gelhardt has struggled for minutes at Elland Road as the years have gone by.
After a respectable 22 appearances during his debut season at senior level, he made 19 the next year as he was shipped on loan to Sunderland.
In 2023/24, after Leeds were relegated back to the Championship, he then made only 13 appearances, while this term, he has not even managed 90 minutes.
Amid that ever-growing lack of game time, Gelhardt was being widely linked with a move away from Leeds before Christmas, with a number of clubs across Europe reportedly keen on acquiring his services.
According to The Yorkshire Evening Post, Rangers, Portsmouth, Stoke City, Plymouth Argyle, Preston North End and two Belgian clubs were interested in moving for Gelhardt, and that the winger himself is open to the idea of calling time on his career at Elland Road.
2
Patrick Bamford
Linked with: Genoa, Wrexham
It was only a few years ago that Patrick Bamford was setting the Premier League alight, scoring 17 goals to help Leeds to an impressive ninth-placed finish in 2020/21. These days, the 31-year-old is lucky if he gets called off the bench.
Bamford hasn’t started a Championship game all season for Leeds and has managed just 123 minutes off the bench, meaning more often than not, he’s left watching the action from the sidelines.
According to TEAMtalk, Genoa and Wrexham are prepared to offer Bamford an escape route out of Elland Road in January, with the two teams keeping an eye on his situation. Football Insider had previously reported in October that Bamford is also keen on leaving.
3
Pascal Struijk
Linked with: Tottenham
Back in July, Tottenham Hotspur prised away one of Leeds’ star players from last season in the form of Archie Gray, with a £30 million fee simply too good to refuse. And according to reports in late December, Spurs are planning to swoop for another of Leeds’ star players in Pascal Struijk.
Transfer expert Graeme Bailey said: “Struijk is coming into his prime and has really been under the radar to a lot of people – not Leeds fans – but he is very much on the radar of a number of Premier League clubs. He is real quality and I am told Tottenham are amongst those who have checked on him.”
However, Bailey added that Leeds do not want to lose the 25-year-old, who has started all but one of their 25 Championship games this season, and are prepared to offer him a new contract.
“Clearly, Leeds want him to stay and will look to tie him down to a new deal, but him staying long-term will be dictated by Leeds getting back to the Premier League.”
4
Illan Meslier
Linked with: Arsenal, Man Utd
According to a recent report in the last couple of weeks from TEAMtalk, Manchester United have revived their interest in Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier.
The Frenchman was a previous target for the Red Devils before they decided to sign Andre Onana from Inter in summer 2023.
Arsenal are also thought to be interested in potentially making the goalkeeper their No 2, with Mikel Arteta thought to be happy with David Raya’s role in the Gunners squad.
United’s No 2, Altay Bayindir, who also joined the club in the summer of 2023 alongside Onana from Fenerbahce, has struggled when called upon this term, and according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, he could be sold in January.
It’s easy to see why United might want Meslier. This season, he’s kept 14 clean sheets in 25 Championship games.
5
Maximilian Wober
Linked with: RB Salzburg
Maximilian Wober joined Leeds from RB Salzburg for £11m in January 2023, but was shipped to German side Borussia Monchengladbach barely six months later. Since his return to Elland Road in the summer, he’s found game time difficult to come by, making just one Championship start all term – mainly due to injury.
According to Austrian newspaper Kurier, as relayed by Sport Witness, Salzburg are now keen to take him back to the Red Bull Arena this month.
Salzburg director Rouven Schroder addressed the possibility of signing Wober (and Feyenoord’s Gernot Trauner) back in January, saying: “They are two very good players. We have a young team, so experienced players are of course exciting. But a lot of points have to be right, and we’ll examine transfers carefully.”
6
Junior Firpo
Linked with: Real Betis
Junior Firpo’s Leeds future appears to rely on whether they get promoted to the Premier League at the end of the season, according to Football Insider, do so, and he’ll stay, but fail, and he is expected to leave.
Now in the final six months of his deal at Elland Road, Firpo, formerly of Barcelona, is free to talk to new clubs, and is reportedly a target for Real Betis, another of his former clubs.
TEAMtalk has reported that with the 28-year-old full-back’s future currently “unsolved”, Betis are “leading the chase” for his signature. Should he re-join Betis, he would be reunited with two of his former Leeds teammates, with Marc Roca and Diego Llorente both turning out for the La Liga side.