New Leeds target labelled a ‘monster in the middle of the park’ by Steven Gerrard, available for £5m
Transfer expert Dean Jones says Kamara’s four-and-a-half-year spell at Rangers is due to come to an end this summer. After 193 games for Rangers, he is attracting interest from Leeds and Southampton, among other clubs.
Gerrard, who has of course since taken over at Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq after links with the Leeds job, is a big fan of Kamara having signed him from Dundee in January 2019. He raved about Kamara shortly after signing him.
“He’s a terrific footballer in possession, always playing with his head up and looking to connect defence and attack,” Gerrard told The Sun. “He showed signs of being a monster in the middle of the park [vs Kilarmarnock in 2019].”
With Leeds likely to be lacking in options in the next few weeks, Kamara would be a wonderful signing and a bargain at £5m. Weston McKennie and Adam Forshaw have gone, with the latter not yet signing a new deal at Elland Road.
Marc Roca is set to join Real Betis on loan and Tyler Adams has half of the Premier League interested in signing him. He is back at Thorp Arch, but still recovering from his hamstring operation. Kamara is needed at Elland Road.
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Leeds defender already has an issue with training under Daniel Farke, started on Wednesday
Hjelde, 19, started on the left of a back four for Leeds on Wednesday in his home nation, as Leeds suffered a 2-0 defeat to Manchester United. Hjelde featured for the first 45 minutes, and was one of 10 players to be substituted.
The Norwegian is well within a shout of starting the season as the club’s first-choice left-back. It comes with Junior Firpo’s future likely to be away from Elland Road – with Marseille, Real Betis and Galatasaray all linked with a move.
Behind Firpo, there are little options. Hjelde is the next best left-back option after starring for Rotherham on loan during the second half of last season. Ryan Manning has joined Southampton, while Charlie Taylor has been linked.
So, Hjelde could be our first-choice left-back going into the opener against Cardiff on August 6 at Elland Road. He was asked after the loss to Manchester United, what training has been like under Farke – and he has a complaint.
“Very tough, I can say that. But it’s been very good. He likes to play possession-based. He knows what he’s doing. It’s just been a week, just trying to implement it. We’ve done too much running for my liking, but that’s how it is.”
Obviously, his response was tongue in cheek and he will be well aware that the fitness of the Leeds squad requires improvement. Luke Ayling alluded to that during the run in last season, after the 3-1 defeat to West Ham United.
Hjelde will be one of the young players coming into the side, alongside the likes of Darko Gyabi, Archie Gray, Mateo Joseph, Joe Gelhardt, Charlie Cresswell, Sam Greenwood and Mateo Joseph. Intriguing to see if he starts for us.
