Leeds United announced the capture of Portuguese winger Helder Costa yesterday. It was an expected deal stemming from his loan deal at Elland Road this season. The cost of this deal was said to be in the region of £15million.
✍️ 4 more years! #ALAW pic.twitter.com/s1d8bXxYlm
— Leeds United (@LUFC) July 7, 2020
Helder Costa has played his part in getting Leeds United into a position where they are challenging for promotion to the Premier League. Across this Championship campaign, the Portuguese flyer has made 40 appearances, missing his first game last time out against Blackburn with a slight knock on his knee.
These 40 games have seen him overcome a bit of a misfiring start to his Leeds United career and he’s become a genuine threat down the right flank. The cultured flier has scored three goals and laid on four assists this season. More than that, though, he has given the Whites that front-foot impetus that puts Leeds’ opponents under immense pressure.
However, Helder Costa won’t be the only current Leeds United player to convert a loan to a permanent deal, not if reports are to be believed. These reports state that Leeds United are actively involved in deals that will bring both Illan Meslier and Jack Harrison to Elland Road on a permanent basis.
Writing in The Athletic, Phil Hay says that Meslier is a deal that Leeds United are onto. Replying to a question from a Leeds United fan on his pre-match post-bag before the Blackburn game, Hay says [July 4. 1:06 pm] about a permanent move for Meslier: “it’s in the pipeline. They want to keep him and they’ve got the option to keep him.”
It is a deal that will see United shell out around £5million for a player who is highly thought of at Elland Road. Meslier has come into the side at a difficult time, replacing Kiko Casilla due to the latter’s eight-game ban. He’s performed with a level of maturity that has no doubt convinced the powers-that-be at the club that he’s a player worth bringing in.
Football Insider said yesterday that the Whites are also ready to commit to sign Jack Harrison on a permanent deal from Manchester City. This will be actioned when the transfer window opens at the end of this month, a clause in his loan deal giving Leeds this option. This deal is said to be at the £8million, with the Whites already having paid £2million as a loan fee.
Harrison has spent the past two seasons at Elland Road on loan. He’s improved his output this season, scoring six goals and providing eight assists. He has impressed not only Marcelo Bielsa but also Leeds United fans. Like Costa, Harrison is another player whose pace, control and trickery have opponents on their heels and who is integral to the way that Leeds United play.
Those two deals, when over the line and the ink is dried, will mean that Leeds United has already committed to £28million worth of spending ahead of what their fans will hope is a return to the Premier League.
