James McAtee signs: How Leeds United's dream 2025 January transfer window may look | OneFootball

FLW outline the dream realistic January window for Leeds United.

Leeds United may well need reinforcements in January to get over the line in the Championship, with some areas of their thin squad already decimated by injuries during the first half of the 2024/25 season.

Leeds made eight new additions to their squad in the summer, and also welcomed back the likes of Max Wöber and Brenden Aaronson. Therefore, Daniel Farke has a squad of around 23 first-team players for their latest promotion push.

Having narrowly missed out on the Premier League back in May, they are looking to go one better than last season under the German and secure their place back in the top-flight, and have certainly added quality and experience to their squad.

It looked like a group of players that would be one of the favourites to go up automatically unless an injury crisis struck. However, that has become their reality, as they are currently in the midst of one in some areas of the squad, with central midfield, centre-back, and out wide all problem areas for the club at present.

Many of the fundamental pieces of Farke's side this season are already becoming clearer, but the current injury situation threatens to undermine their season and they are currently worrying about multiple areas of the squad which are stretched extremely thin.

In the coming months, it will become clearer where each player's place in the pecking order is, and what problem areas are still persisting for Farke. Currently, the only way for Leeds to add more experience and depth to their side from now until January is by exploring the free agent market.

Should they opt to give more time to assess the team, then January will be a potentially season-defining period for the Whites, who need all the players they can get currently. Things can change quickly in football, as they have proven lately, but here we take a look at a realistic dream window for Leeds.

Note: Considering the shortage of options, this piece will primarily focus on incomings, with Leeds and Farke arguably requiring every first-team player in some capacity currently.

James McAtee

Following the conclusion of the window, Leeds' chief executive Angus Kinnear revealed that the club had pursued ambitious swoops for James McAtee and Fabio Carvalho from Manchester City and Liverpool respectively, although Pep Guardiola elected to keep hold of the former, whereas the latter joined Brentford for £27 million. It left Leeds without a natural playmaker, even if they had the likes of Brenden Aaronson, Joel Piroe, Willy Gnonto, and co. who could operate centrally.

The Man City youngster has been out on loan for the last two years with Sheffield United, initially with the Blades in the Championship, where they saw the best of him during the second half of their promotion campaign, highlighting his Premier League potential. From 37 Championship games that season, James McAtee collected 12 goal contributions from attacking midfield but the majority of those came in the second half of the season, with nine coming since gameweek 24.

The 21-year-old then had the opportunity to take that form into last season, and was one of Sheffield United's shining lights in an otherwise bitterly disappointing Premier League campaign. He is well down the pecking order with City despite their decision to retain him, which is doing him little good in terms of regular senior game time.

A player who could operate as a central or attacking midfielder would be of huge benefit in terms of re-configuring Farke's attacking options. His creativity and eye for goal as well as his link-up play could be the difference in the final third for Leeds. It may be contingent on how much game time he gets in the next three months, but Leeds would be a good destination for the youngster to continue his development, should Guardiola's change his mind.

His quality could be a big differential, as well as providing Leeds and Farke with a different type of midfield profile. His creativity as more of a natural playmaker would be of huge benefit when breaking down teams sat deep and compact in a low block, which Leeds do not always have the answers for.

Tyler Morton

Leeds are particularly light in terms of midfield options following injuries this week sustained by Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev, and Liverpool's Tyler Morton could be an excellent option. Currently, it is asking a lot of Ao Tanaka and Joe Rothwell to remain fit with the other midfield concerns seriously threatening Leeds' chances of success, and ultimately, promotion this season.

Leeds' midfield base is likely to be a talking point in the coming weeks and months, with any further issues likely to see their automatic promotion hopes derailed due to a lack of depth and options available, given that they are already stretched extremely thin and cannot afford any further issues. Should Ampadu or Gruev's conditioning and match fitness take time to get up to speed, Leeds should be eyeing up other options.

One of which could be Morton, the Liverpool youngster that has previously plyed his trade in the Championship for the last two seasons, and the 21-year-old has already made 79 second tier appearances. However, like McAtee, his pathway seems blocked at Anfield, meaning a move to West Yorkshire, at least temporarily, could suit all parties.

It is not good for his development to be featuring so infrequently when he requires regular first-team football. He is also the ideal sort of midfield player for this Leeds team, given his assured nature in possession and the amount of responsibility he is willing to have in possession at such a tender age.

A midfielder who's always looking for the ball, Morton is often seen dropping deep to receive the ball from his central defenders, before progressing through the midfield lines. He is comfortable at carrying the ball, but in any respect, he can make things happen with the ball at his feet in order to create attacking opportunities as a deep-lying playmaker. In a ball-dominant Leeds team, he could thrive.

Bruno Ogbus

The two areas of the squad which, on paper, looked the most in need of depth during the summer were at right-sided centre-back and in attacking midfield. Leeds don't necessarily need a starting quality defender, but someone who can come in and push the likes of Pascal Struijk and Joe Rodon in the centre-back pecking order. Max Wöber is suffering from a fresh injury concern after recovering from his early-season calf problem, with meniscus troubles in his knee meaning that the latest is that he is set to undergo surgery last week on the knee issue.

Farke stated that it will be around six weeks until the Austrian is back in training, and his fitness is not necessarily reliable. It's untimely, to say the least. Wöber has been reintegrated into Farke's plans at Leeds, but his game time will also be vital between now and January. In fairness, the starting duo appears to be set in stone for now, but the fact that his side are extremely thin at the back in terms of numbers is the worry.

Leeds looked at Ogbus in the summer, alongside Nottingham Forest and AC Milan for the defender. His potential has caught the eye of clubs across Europe, with AC Milan having a ‘low digit’ offer in the millions turned down for the player. However, Dennis Bayer of Sky Sports Germany was the first to the news that they face competition for his services. Which was then confirmed to be the likes of Forest and Leeds by Sky Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg.

Leeds have just one right-footed centre-back in their first-team, and it's possible that they are keen to keep Ampadu in midfield upon his return to fitness, as opposed to looking to him to fill in for Rodon at right-sided centre-back. It may not be the most pressing area of the squad to address during the January window, but it is certainly something to consider after James Debayo impressed in pre-season and Diogo Monteiro is yet to make a first-team appearance.

The pair are perhaps seen as less ready in development-terms compared to Ogbus, which perhaps explains Leeds' interest. He is an athletic profile, too, which is something Leeds' central defensive pool would also benefit from having, even if he is hardly a regular between January and May.

These three signings would give Leeds the depth and quality in every position on the pitch, providing every other senior first-team player remains at Elland Road.