According to the latest reports, Leeds United are being linked with a move for Welsh winger Daniel James who currently plies his trade for Swansea City. The 21-year-old is enjoying a breakthrough season under Graham Potter and has hit a rich vein of form of late by providing three assists in the last four games.
Marcelo Bielsa might have played down United’s chances of doing any business in January, but we feel the club hierarchy should convince him to go after some players. James is a left winger and that is definitely one of the positions where the Whites need cover as they only have Ezgjan Alioski as a quality option.
What has added more fuel to these rumours is that the player recently featured in the Instagram story of Tyler Roberts. However, that is likely to be because both of them are well acquainted as they have represented Wales at youth level.
The winger is in the final year of his contract and could be prized with a move away in January. The Whites are in with a decent shout of moving to the Premier League next season and the player might be attracted towards them. However, he has settled well into the Swans team off late and is getting first team opportunities which the winger might have to fight for at Elland Road as it is likely that Bielsa would prefer Alioski over him.
James is yet not a finished product, and we don’t feel that he can get in the first eleven straightaway. The Whites might have to be a bit patient with him to come good and find his feet in the Bielsa system, and at this point, one doesn’t see him as a significant upgrade over someone like Alioski. However, he can be an impact maker coming off from the bench once in a while as his pace and energy certainly seem to unsettle most of the defences around in the Championship.
The 21-year-old can add competition for places and depth to the squad. Currently, young 17-year-old Jack Clarke is the probably the second choice option for the Whites to play on the left wing. Therefore, James can come in handy in a long season.
However, the fact that Bielsa downplayed any transfer activity and given that the player is enjoying a good run with the Swans, we don’t see a move like this panning out at the moment. The Whites have struggled in the past month because of various injuries, and they can consider moving in for James, but it all depends on Bielsa and whether he considers making a new signing a priority in January or not.
