Leeds United are currently competing to secure automatic promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, following their relegation from the division last year.
The Whites are top of the Championship, as it stands, after they beat Millwall 2-0 at Elland Road on Sunday, with Leicester City having been preoccupied by FA Cup action.
Wilfried Gnonto, with a fantastic left-footed strike from distance, and Dan James, with a composed finish from close-range, secured the win with goals either side of the break.
Despite the likes of Ipswich Town and Southampton still being in the race to finish in the top two and secure automatic promotion out of the division, the Whites are reportedly looking at possible deals to bolster their squad should they make it out of the Championship.
Daniel Farke's side are reported to be lining up a swoop to sign a Premier League player who has played in the Champions League this season…
Leeds United transfer news
According to a report from the Sunday Mirror (17 March, page 66), via Sports View, the German head coach is keen on a deal to sign Sean Longstaff from Newcastle United.
The outlet claims that the Championship outfit are looking to bring the English central midfielder to Elland Road at the end of the season, should they earn promotion to the top-flight.
It states that Longstaff's current contractual situation could open the door for the club to swoop in for a fee of £15m as his current deal is due to expire in the summer of 2025.
This means that the Magpies academy graduate will only have 12 months left to run on his contract at the end of this season, which could open the door for Leeds to make their move for him, as Eddie Howe's side may not want to risk him leaving for nothing next year.
It does, however, reveal that Newcastle have held preliminary talks with the midfielder over a possible extension at St. James' Park. It remains to be seen whether or not interest from the Whites is enough to convince Longstaff to ditch his boyhood club ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.
The 49ers must now be careful as they look set to repeat the error former owner Andrea Radrizzani made with the signing of Weston McKennie in January of last year.
Like Longstaff, the USA international was a midfielder who did not make a big impact in or out of possession on a regular basis, which meant that his presence did not help them to avoid relegation from the Premier League last season.
Weston McKennie's time with Leeds in numbers
The Whites swooped to sign McKennie on loan from Italian giants Juventus midway through the 2022/23 campaign, with an option to make it permanent for £30m in the summer.
Radrizzani reportedly agreed to pay a €1.25m (£1m) loan fee for the American lightweight. However, it was unknown as to exactly how much of his £75k-per-week wages were covered by Leeds during his six-month spell in Yorkshire.
Irrespective of how much the deal cost the club, it was a poor signing by the former owner as the midfielder struggled throughout his time in the Premier League.
McKennie left a lot to be desired with his play out of possession as he was dribbled past (1.1) almost as many times as he completed tackles (1.4) per game, which shows that opposition players found it too easy to drive past him in midfield.
He also lost 57% of his duels and 61% of his battles on the ground across 19 appearances and 16 starts in the Premier League, as his opponents got the better of him more often than not in physical contests.
Expected Assisted Goals (0.04)
Bottom 20%
Shot-creating actions (1.82)
Bottom 27%
Pass accuracy (75.2%)
Bottom 20%
Progressive carries (0.88)
Bottom 29%
Progressive passes (5.14)
Top 42%
As you can see in the table above, the 25-year-old dud was a below average performer in a host of key metrics in possession. He barely ranked above average as a progressive passer whilst being among the worst midfielders in the division at creating chances and finding his teammates with passes.
Why Sean Longstaff could be the next Weston McKennie
The 49ers could repeat the club's mistake of signing McKennie to 'bolster' their midfielder by signing Longstaff, as he has also struggled on and off the ball for Newcastle in the Premier League this season.
His form for the Magpies throughout the 2023/24 campaign does not suggest that he would be a shrewd addition for the Whites, particularly for a fee of £15m at the age of 26.
Longstaff, who made five appearances in the group stage of the Champions League, currently ranks within the bottom 14% of Premier League midfielders for shot-creating actions (1.61), the bottom 39% for Expected Assisted Goals (0.08), and the bottom 17% for progressive carries (0.66) per 90 respectively.
This shows that, like McKennie, the Toon dud does not offer much in the way of creativity and progression in possession from a central midfield position.
Appearances
19
25
Key passes per game
0.7
0.6
Tackles per game
1.5
1.5
Duels won per game
3.7
3.3
Duel success rate
43%
47%
Dribbled past per game
1.1
1.2
As you can see in the table above, both players rarely create chances for their team whilst being below average in physical duels. They also both allow players to dribble past them, to run at their side's defence, more than once per game on average.
These statistics show that both midfielders are weak, from a physical perspective, and do not offer outstanding qualities in or out of possession in midfield, as they are dribbled past far too often in comparison to how many tackles they make, and do not create much for their sides.
Therefore, the 49ers could land McKennie 2.0 if they swoop to sign the Newcastle lightweight for Farke in the summer, should Leeds earn promotion to the Premier League, and it could be £15m wasted before they kick a ball in the top-flight, which is why they should avoid this potential move.
