According to the latest reports from The Sun on Sunday (24/3; page 59), Swansea City winger Daniel James reportedly has one condition before he commits his future to the Swans and signs a new deal for them. The 21-year-old has asked for a fixed fee clause which would ensure that another situation like the one between him and Leeds United doesn’t happen.
Such a clause would ensure that any interested club can trigger transfer talks with the player if they offer him a specified amount. That amount is not yet clear for Daniel James, but it seems to us that Swansea might have to agree to the demands if they want their star winger to commit to a long term deal.
Leed United were willing to shell out £10m in January to land this Welsh star, but it seems likely that he is going to cost more than that amount. James’ performance for the past two months has been impressive, and he has been on a good run of form.
Recently, the winger again caught the eye of everyone as he put in a fantastic performance against reigning Premier League champions Manchester City which showcased that James could thrive even at the biggest of the stages. It is not yet clear what the ‘fixed clause fee’ would be, but it can be twice or even thrice of what United were looking to offer for him in the summer (yes, obviously we are speculating here).
The signing of a new contract shouldn’t deter the chasing clubs as often these tactics are used by the clubs to propel the price of their star players further. Swansea meanwhile though might be glad that the deal somehow fell through in January as it is more or less certain to us that James will attract more than £10m if a club comes calling for him in the summer.
Leeds United can only pay such an amount if they manage to get to the Premier League. Their direct promotion hopes currently hangs in the balance after they suffered a defeat against major rivals Sheffield United. James could have been a significant difference maker if the club managed to sign him in January, but now it seems like the winger is slowly getting out of bounds from Leeds United’s perspective.
However, the fact that the player is keeping an option open to trigger talks with prospective clubs, suggests that United might still be in with a shout to sign him in the summer. But, the Whites are likely to spend more than what they were willing to pay in January for this winger if they indeed decide to go down the Daniel James route.
