Leeds United got off to a dazzling start in the Championship this season as their silky and fast football, coupled with resilience and stability in their back line, gave hopes of promotion to their faithful. However, the loopholes started to emerge as the campaign progressed and they have withered away completely in the recent weeks owing to their lacklustre outings.
While Thomas Christiansen was sacked last month, Leeds United’s new manager, Paul Heckingbottom, has hardly made a difference and under his tutelage, the Whites have lost three of their last four league games. Leeds United’s hopes for promotion seems to be done and dusted for this season and thus, they should look for strategies that would help them in uplifting the productivity of their arsenal next season.
Recently, the Yorkshire based outfit’s owner, Andrea Radrizzani, had stated that he is keen to follow the footsteps of Wolverhampton Wanderers. Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have a number of players who are the clients of the renowned agent, Jorge Mendes. The Wolves are currently at the top of the Championship table and the club’s Portuguese connection has been one of the primary reasons for their success.
Leeds United, in their pursuit to emulate the design of the Wolves, have apparently put Benfica’s Diogo Goncalves on their radar and are interested to lure him to the Elland Road in the summer. Goncalves is capable enough to ply his trade as a winger as well as a secondary striker. He is good at making stupendous crosses, is quite strong in the air and is also a set-piece specialist.
Benfica have a good stock of attackers and due to this, the 21-year-old has received very limited opportunities in the Portuguese top-flight this season. He has been handed merely 7 appearances, out of which 4 have been cameos off the bench. Although he made 4 starts in the Champions League, a blossoming youngster like him must be personally desirous to find himself on the pitch regularly. Thus, a move to Leeds United could make a lot of sense for him.
The Peacocks need some cutting edge on their wings next season and the summer transfer window would be crucial for them. Goncalves might lack the experience of English football but it wouldn’t be very hard for him to acclimatize with the same. The Portuguese could be an upgrade over Hadi Sacko and a loan move should benefit all the parties involved.
