Leeds: boss might avoid a £5 million liability by signing a 6-foot-5 EFL player.

Leeds United head coach Daniel Farke was brought in ahead of the 2023/24 campaign to lead the club back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

The Whites were relegated from the top-flight at the end of last season and now have a squad full of players with top level experience and a great chance to compete for promotion back to the big time.

Although they were able to keep hold of the likes of Georginio Rutter and Crysencio Summerville, Leeds did allow a host of first-team players to depart and this meant that new signings were needed to bolster the squad.

Ethan Ampadu, Sam Byram, Joel Piroe, Glen Kamara, Karl Darlow, Joe Rodon, Ilia Gruev, Djed Spence, and Jaidon Anthony were all brought in to improve the depth and quality of Farke’s options across the pitch.

Whilst Darlow was signed, from Newcastle United, to compete with Illan Meslier for a starting spot between the sticks, the ex-Hull City loanee has not been trusted in the Championship so far.

This could open the door for Leeds to sign a goalkeeper who has the quality to immediately replace the Frenchman between the sticks in January.

Phil Hay revealed, on The Square Ball podcast, during the summer transfer window that Norwich City colossus Angus Gunn was on the list of shot-stoppers that were appreciated by the Whites as they looked at their options.

That interest came two years on from the club’s failed effort to land him in a £5m deal from Southampton ahead of the 2021/22 campaign, as the Canaries secured his signature amid late pressure from the Yorkshire-based side to snap him up.

However, their latest round of interest did not amount to anything as Darlow was brought in as a back-up to Meslier and they did not splash the cash on a new number one.

Football Insider had reported that Leeds were planning to sell the French shot-stopper during the summer transfer window but a move failed to materialise before the deadline passed.

The same outlet claimed that the club value him at a minimum of £20m and that Premier League sides Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur had both shown an interest in him, although they seemingly opted against a serious effort to sign him.

This suggests that the door could still be open for Meslier to depart in the upcoming January window if an attractive bid comes in for him, as the Whites were prepared to part ways with the former Lorient prospect ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.

Therefore, Farke must revive his interest in Gunn at the start of next year in order to finally ditch his current number one heading into the second half of the season.

The Norwich-born goalkeeper, who was twice-signed by Farke – in 2017 and 2021 – during their time together in Norfolk, has racked up 29 clean sheets in 106 competitive games for his current club.

He kept 15 shutouts in 45 matches on loan from Manchester City with Norwich during the 2017/18 campaign under the German head coach.

His form for the Yellows led to a permanent switch to Premier League side Southampton, where he only made 30 appearances and kept eight clean sheets in total before his move back to East Anglia two years ago.

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