Premier League side Leeds United are reportedly monitoring RB Leipzig centre-back Josko Gvardiol, valued at £27 million by the Bundesliga giants.
According to Football Insider, Leeds United are stepping up their interest in RB Leipzig central defender Josko Gvardiol. The Premier League outfit have been tracking the Croatian international for two years now, and could finally move in for him this summer.
Gvardiol is a Dinamo Zagreb youth product and moved to RB Leipzig last summer. The 20-year-old has since cemented his spot at the heart of the Bundesliga side’s defence, making 39 appearances for them across competitions.
The youngster can also play as a left-back, and his versatility could be of great use to Leeds. The Whites were close to completing the defender’s signing in 2020, but the move did not materialise. Leeds are once again in the market to sign the Croatian international, with some other Premier League clubs interested in him as well.
Leeds director of football Victor Orta is especially monitoring the defender and wants his team to complete the signing as soon as possible. Leipzig value Gvardiol at around £27 million. The Bundesliga giants had signed him for around £18 million last summer and could thus earn a decent profit from his sale.
The defender will have four years left on his contract with the Bundesliga giants after the ongoing season, so it won’t be easy to price him away from the club. But Leeds are eager to add defensive reinforcements ahead of the next season after struggling to keep teams at bay this season. They have conceded 68 goals in the Premier League, the most by any side in the English first division this season.
Manager Jesse Marsch currently has Pascal Struijk, Liam Cooper, Robin Koch, Diego Llorente and Charlie Creswell as their centre-back options. But Leeds will still need new additions in the department to fix their defensive issues ahead of the next season. To that end, the Whites have been linked with several centre-backs, including Oscar Mingueza.
The Leeds boss is also familiar with Gvardiol, having worked with both Red Bull Salzburg and RB Leipzig recently. He is thus eager to add the youngster to his squad. Whether Leeds manage to complete the 20-year-old’s signing remains to be seen.
