Leeds plotting ambitious move for £30m hitman if they win promotion
Leeds will reportedly target Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard if they win promotion to the Premier League this season.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side are poised to end their 16-year exile from the Premier League. They are top of the Championship table, with a six-point advantage over third-placed Brentford.
The often criticised Patrick Bamford, Leeds’ top scorer with 15 goals this term, is the club’s only senior striker.
And the Sunday Mirror, via talkSPORT, claims that Bielsa wants to bring in Edouard to compete with Bamford next season.
Edouard netted 22 goals in 27 appearances in Celtic’s ninth successive title triumph, as the season ended early in Scotland.
Indeed, the Frenchman has scored an impressive 61 goals since joining the Bhoys from PSG in 2018.
Celtic could demand as much as £30m for the 22-year-old, who has also been linked with Arsenal.
Just last month, Edouard dismissed transfer speculation about him. He also insisted that his priority was to help Celtic win a 10th title in a row.
He said: “Winning 10 in a row is very important for the club, the players and the fans. Of course I would love to be part of it. No one knows what will happen in the future but I want to be a part of it.
“My first target right now is to play football again after so much time away from the pitch. I only set personal targets for myself once the season actually starts.
“At the moment, I am still under contract with Celtic and my priority is to get back playing again. In the future, we will see what happens.”
Augustin move turns sour
Leeds had appeared to pull off a transfer coup when they signed Jean-Kevin Augustin on loan from Leipzig in January.
However, the 23-year-old played just 48 minutes of first-team football before returning to his parent club.
Leipzig insist that an agreement was struck with Leeds to make Augustin’s move permanent if they gained promotion.
The fee is believed to be in excess of £17million for a player who made just three Leeds appearances from the bench.
And Leipzig will reportedly take legal action against Leed, if they refuse to take up the purchase clause.