Romano says £30m star Leeds almost signed in 2022 set for new club, could team up with Gnonto Leeds United News
But he failed at Milan, in his first year. Playing 40 times, he failed to score a single goal – laying on just one assist. With Atalanta selling Rasmus Hojlund to Manchester United for £72m, De Ketelaere is set to replace the striker.
Romano says Milan and Atalanta are in agreement and while De Ketelaere is yet to agree, he will surely be tempted by a move to the Serie A side – who are in the Europa League. A year after Leeds tried to sign him, he is on his way.
It is a brilliant move for the Belgian star. Given his woeful form for Milan during 22-23, he might have had to go back to Belgium – or try something new. But joining Atalanta, who finished fifth in Serie A last season, is a brilliant move.
He could be joined by Willy Gnonto. TeamTalk report that Gnonto has told his agents that he does not want a move to Everton. But, a move back to Italy is on the cards – with Juventus and Atalanta both interested in signing Gnonto.
So, it could be that Gnonto and De Ketelaere team up in attack. Last summer, it might have been that both players combined at Elland Road – now, the duo could play together at Atalanta. Gnonto remains a Leeds player, for now.
Related development:
Leeds: Rico Lewis could be Farke’s own Zinchenko
The Manchester City youth prospect would be a great new addition at Elland Road this summer.
Leeds United will kick off their Championship campaign this weekend at Elland Road where they will host Cardiff City, with Daniel Farke leading his new squad in his debut fixture as the new manager.
The Whites will be missing many of their Premier League first-teamers with the likes of Weston McKennie, Marc Roca, Rodrigo and Maximilian Wober just a few of the departures confirmed this summer.
Indeed, there is still plenty of work to be done in the transfer market to bolster key areas of the pitch and ensure Leeds can comfortably compete in the second tier to achieve automatic promotion back to the Premier League, something that Farke has twice-masterminded with Norwich City.
Who are Leeds’ transfer targets?
Leeds have been linked with numerous players over the summer transfer window, however, Ethan Ampadu is the only player who has been secured so far.
It was reported last week, that the west Yorkshire outfit are interested in signing Manchester City wonderkid Rico Lewis – who last season started making a name for himself in the full-back role for the treble-winners.
According to the Sunday Express [July 30, page 5], the Whites are competing with Southampton for Lewis’ signature this summer, however at present, Man City have rejected all offers that have been submitted for their youth prospect (as initially relayed by Hampshire Live).
How good is Rico Lewis?
There is no doubt that Leeds could really benefit from new additions in their full-back roles ahead of next season, with Rasmus Kristensen already gone, whilst Cody Drameh and Junior Firpo’s futures hang in the balance.
As a result, the signing of Lewis would be an outstanding piece of business for the Whites in their pursuit to strengthen the wider flanks over the remaining weeks of the window, but it is looking like the Premier League champions will take some convincing to part ways with their talent.
Farke could almost certainly promise regular first-team football for the 18-year-old, something that could not only make the move an attractive prospect for the player, but the club could benefit from loaning out their star to boost his development and get him ready to become a reliable presence at the Etihad in the future.
Over 14 Premier League appearances, the £11.5m-rated youngster, who was once hailed “exceptional” by Pep Guardiola, tallied up an impressive 92% pass completion rate, successfully completed 73% of his dribbles and won 53% of his aerial and ground duels combined, demonstrating strong consistency in his output despite only starting 10 games, as per SofaScore.
In fact, the new Leeds boss could land his very own Oleksander Zinchenko, as the Arsenal full-back has been named as the third most comparable player to Lewis over the last 12 months, as per FBref.
Comparatively, the pair have shared a number of similarities in their output over last season including shot-creating actions per 90 (2.69 v 2.38), percentage of dribblers tackled (54.5% v 53.8%), successful take-ons (57.1% v 60%) and pass completion rate (91.4% v 86.4%).
With that being said, the signing of Lewis would be a no-brainer for Leeds, however, the club will likely need to present a competitive loan package to tempt Man City to allow their prized asset to leave during the campaign ahead
