LEEDS COULD BRILLIANTLY REPLACE GNONTO BY SIGNING 3.4M STAR

Leeds United made their first signing of the summer transfer window earlier this week as they confirmed the signing of central defender Joe Rodon.

The Wales international has been snapped up on a permanent deal from Tottenham Hotspur after he spent the 2023/24 campaign on loan at Elland Road.

Rodon is the first player to come through the door since the window opened and there could be more to come from the Whites before it slams shut at the end of August.

Daniel Farke's side failed to earn promotion out of the Championship last season and this means that they are preparing for a second year in the second tier.

The German head coach will have known that the failure to get to the Premier League would put him at risk of losing some of his best players, and that has already proven to be the case with Archie Gray's move to Spurs.

Premier League side Brighton are now reportedly interested in Crysencio Summerville, Georginio Rutter, Glen Kamara, and Wilfried Gnonto from the West Yorkshire outfit.

The Championship side could find a brilliant replacement for Gnonto, should he depart from Elland Road, by securing a swoop for one of their reported transfer targets before the window slams shut.

Leeds' interest in flying winger

Last month, Dutch outlet VoetbalZone named Leeds as one of a number of clubs interested in a swoop to sign Excelsior winger Couhaib Driouech this summer.

The report claims that the Whites and Spanish giants Sevilla, who have Victor Orta at the helm, are both keen on the Morocco U23 international ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.

It stated that Eredivisie champions PSV are also eyeing up a deal for the flying attacker but that they have already failed with one attempt to secure his services for a fee of €2m (£1.7m).

The outlet revealed that the Dutch side are looking for a fee of up to €4m (£3.4m) for their star forward but it remains to be seen whether or not Leeds are prepared to pay it.

VoetbalZone added that the player's preference, at the time of their report, was to sign for PSV but they are yet to agree a deal with Excelsior.

This means that Leeds are still in the race for him as it stands. However, they will seemingly need to persuade him to make the move to the second division in England instead of holding out for the chance to play European football with the Dutch champions.

If they can usurp PSV to secure the player's signature then they could brilliantly replace Gnonto, should the Italian forward move on this summer.

Wilfried Gnonto's season in numbers

The Italy U21 international, who remained at Elland Road after handing in a transfer request and failing to seal an exit last summer, enjoyed a fairly successful season in the Championship.

He competed with Dan James for a starting berth on the right flank and eventually landed a regular spot during the second half of the campaign.

The 20-year-old whiz ended the season with 19 of his 36 appearances in the division coming as a starter, which shows that he was an important member of Farke's side.

In those 36 matches, the former Inter and Zurich starlet racked up eight goals and two assists for the Whites in the Championship - hitting double figures for goal contributions.

This shows that Gnonto has the quality to make a big impact in the final third with his ability to score and create goals from a wide position, which is why Leeds would need to land a good replacement for him.

As you can see in the table above, he was one of the best finishers within the squad in the league as he outperformed his xG by more than two goals.

These statistics show why it is a concern that Brighton are interested in a deal for the forward, particularly after it was reported earlier this summer that the 20-year-old whiz is pushing for an exit to work his way back into the Italy senior squad.

However, Leeds could brilliantly replace Gnonto and forget all about his absence by securing a deal to sign Driouech ahead of PSV this summer.

Why Leeds should sign Couhaib Driouech

Firstly, he is a versatile forward who can play out on the left or the right flank whilst also being able to play through the middle as an attacking midfielder, second striker, or centre-forward.

This means that, like Gnonto, Farke could use him a multitude of positions and systems throughout the season, rather than him being a specialist who only suits one specific role.

Secondly, Driouech is only 22 and this means that he has plenty of time left to develop and improve over the years to come, which means that Leeds could bring him in as a project player who could increase in value and be sold for major profit in the future if all goes to plan.

Finally, the Moroccan starlet also has the quality to potentially replace what the Italian brought to the Leeds side, whilst also having the ability to possibly improve the team.

As you can see in the table above, Driouech was directly involved in four more goals and created seven more 'big chances' than Gnonto despite playing nine fewer matches for the Eredivisie side.

These statistics suggest that the 22-year-old gem, who was once hailed as an "interesting" dribbler in the Dutch top-flight by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has the potential to be a far greater creative threat for Leeds than the 20-year-old want-away was last term, whilst offering a similar level of goalscoring.

Therefore, the Excelsior magician could be a brilliant replacement for the Italian gem due to his positional flexibility, age profile, and qualities as a scorer and a creator of goals from a wide role.

2024-07-04T17:58:31Z dg43tfdfdgfd