Leeds United are not messing around in their efforts to build a squad that can avoid being relegated from the Premier League at the first time of asking next season.
It is clear that Daniel Farke and the recruitment team have placed an early emphasis on strengthening the defence, as three of the club’s four summer signings so far are defenders.
Leeds officially completed the signing of Sweden international left-back Gabriel Gudmundsson from Lille on Tuesday, to replace Junior Firpo as the first-choice left-back at Elland Road next term.
The Championship champions have also added two new central defenders to their squad this summer, as Sebastiaan Bornauw and Jaka Bijol have joined the club, from Wolfsburg and Udinese respectively.
Leeds will need to turn their attention to the attacking areas of the park before long, though, to make sure that their attack is ready for the Premier League.
TEAMtalk recently reported that the club would like to sign Manor Solomon permanently, but that negotiations have reached a deadlock, which means that it remains to be seen whether or not he will be returning to West Yorkshire.
Why Manor Solomon would be a risky signing for Leeds
Bringing the Israel international back to Elland Road ahead of a season in the Premier League could be a risky move for the club, given that he previously played at that level and had to drop down to the Championship.
Solomon first made the move to England with Fulham in 2022 and the winger enjoyed a decent, yet unspectacular, time at Craven Cottage, with a return of five goals in and zero assists in 24 matches in all competitions.
The 25-year-old then signed for Tottenham Hotspur the following summer and managed zero goals and two assists in six games for Spurs in all competitions before joining Leeds on loan last year.
Appearances
24
Goals
4
Big chances missed
0
Big chances created
1
xA
1.43
Assists
2
As you can see in the table above, Solomon was far from an outstanding performer during his time in the top-flight, as he rarely contributed as a scorer or a creator of goals for Spurs or Fulham.
However, the right-footed sensation did produced ten goals and 12 assists in 39 appearances in the Championship for Leeds last season, as he hit his stride on the left side of Farke’s 4-2-3-1 system.
This shows that he knows the system and has proven that he can deliver in the pressure cooker that is Elland Road, but there is no guarantee that the forward will translate those performances up to the Premier League.
That is why Solomon is a potentially risky signing for the Whites to make this summer, and may be why they are looking at an alternative target.
Leeds submit bid to sign new winger
According to Africa Foot, Leeds United have made contact to sign Jeremie Boga from OGC Nice before the end of the summer transfer window.
The report claims that the Premier League side have already submitted an offer of €15m (£13m) to snap up the Ivorian talent, although it remains to be seen whether or not that is enough to tempt the French club to part ways with him.
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Boga’s contract with the Ligue 1 side is due to expire in the summer of 2027 and this means that the current window could be their last chance to extract maximum value out of him, as he will only have one year left on his deal next year.
The outlet adds that there is interest from teams in the Turkish Super Lig, which could offer competition to Leeds, but it does not reveal whether or not they have also made offers for the 28-year-old attacker.
Africa Foot does state, though, that the former Chelsea youngster, who also played for Birmingham City, would not be against a return to England this summer.
Why Leeds should sign Jeremie Boga
Leeds should push to win the race for the 28-year-old attacker because he could be an even better option than Solomon to fill the hole on the left wing for Farke in the Premier League.
Whilst he has not played, bar one game for Chelsea, in the English top-flight, Boga has proven his qualities in Ligue 1 and the Serie A during his career, two of Europe’s biggest leagues.
The Ivorian ace is coming off the back of a disappointing season, with three goals and one assist in 24 games for Nice, but Leeds could see that as a positive as it could allow them to land a bargain deal for the forward, who has offered far more in front of goal in previous campaigns.
In fact, Boga’s performances in the 2023/24 campaign in Ligue 1 for Nice suggest that he has the ability on the ball to offer even more to the team in the Premier League than Solomon.
xG
4.23
Top 22%
Goals
6
Top 13%
Shots on target
19
Top 16%
xA
4.26
Top 18%
Assists
6
Top 15%
Chances created
33
Top 21%
As you can see in the table above, the former Chelsea youngster ranked highly among his positional peers in Ligue 1 as both a scorer and a creator of goals, ending the season with more goals and more assists than Solomon has managed in the Premier League in his career to date.
On top of that, Boga, who was hailed as a “unique” talent by coach Michael Beale, also showcased his quality in Italy with Atalanta and Sassuolo, with 20 goals and 13 assists in 136 matches in the Italian top-flight.
The Leeds target, who scored 11 Serie A goals in the 2019/20 season, is an experienced and quality left-sided attacker who has shown that he can deliver goals and assists in multiple major European leagues.
There would be some concern over his disappointing form last term, though, but Farke will surely back himself to help Boga to get back to his best, which would make him an even better option than Solomon, who has not delivered anywhere near the same level of quality in a major league.
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