Leeds United are slowly warming up in the transfer window and the Championship side have reportedly shown their interest in Chelsea midfielder Mario Pasalic. The 22-year-old midfielder is one of the strong contenders to make his way to the Elland Road.
Chelsea signed the highly rated midfielder back in 2014 but the player is yet to don the Chelsea shirt for a single time. A number of loan deals followed his move as the player has been to AC Milan, Elche and Monaco for loan stints.
Chelsea’s strategy for the young players has often been criticised as the West Londoners currently have a host of players plying their trades at various clubs. Pasalic is one of the few players whose development has been very promising.
Leeds failed to make it to the playoffs which led to the resignation of manager Garry Monk. The English manager was supposed to sign a contract extension but to everyone’s surprise, he chose to leave the club.
Leeds went on to appoint Thomas Christiansen who has already made his first signing of the summer as Leeds welcomed Mateusz Klich recently.
Leeds have been looking for some reinforcements in the midfield and Pasalic’s addition could be a very ambitious move for the Championship outfit. The Croatian international is expected to sign a new deal with Chelsea but the English club is unlikely to take him under their fold as of yet as they are already spoilt for choices.
Pasalic could be used to fine tune the midfield. He has been more suited to a central midfield role who is more inclined to attack and has often been likened to the Chelsea legend Frank Lampard. He has the knack to score goals and added to that he could also help in shielding the backline.
Chelsea wouldn’t let him go permanently as the player is of very high quality but a loan deal is likely to be the scenario for the player. The former Hajduk Split midfielder had loan spells with Elche and Monaco before and has gone from strength to strength.
He has a more physical approach to the game and already looks like a more defensive version of Cesc Fabregas.
After the last season, everyone would have expected Leeds to make a statement in the transfer market but the club has opted for a slow and steady approach. They are preferring quality rather than quantity and the signing of Pasalic is a reflection of that.
