"Strong possibility" - Leeds United offered fresh Manor Solomon transfer hope amid Marseille development | OneFootball

Football League World's Leeds United fan pundit discussed the transfer saga between his side and Marseille for Manor Solomon

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Leeds United are embroiled in a real transfer saga in the wake of their promotion back to the Premier League as champions, as they bid to beat off Marseille to the permanent signing of Tottenham Hotspur's Manor Solomon following his hugely successful loan spell at Elland Road.

Solomon joined Leeds on loan from Spurs for the duration of the 2024/25 Championship campaign last summer after the departure of star winger Crysencio Summerville, and he enjoyed a sensational season as Daniel Farke's side lifted the second-tier title ahead of Burnley.

The Israeli international endured a mixed start to life in West Yorkshire before finding his feet as the season went on, and he finished the campaign with a career-best return of 10 goals and 12 assists from 39 appearances.

Solomon, who scored the emphatic 91st-minute winner that ensured a 2-1 victory at Plymouth Argyle and with it the league title on the final day, has been continually linked with a permanent return to Elland Road.

As per reports, Spurs are looking to offload Solomon this summer but will hold out for a £20 million sum, with Leeds hoping to land his services for £15 million. The Whites have, however, received a potentially seismic blow in their pursuit of the Spurs winger, who has reportedly given "the green light" to join Ligue 1 side Marseille following a recent expression of interest from the south of France despite being "open" to discussions with Leeds.

Solomon is previously quoted as saying he wants to get back to the Premier League. Should that ambition remain intact, Leeds' chances of pulling off a deal may not be dead in the water quite just yet, but Marseille's advanced interest imposes an undeniable challenge.

Leeds United verdict given on Manor Solomon transfer chances amid Marseille claim

FLW asked our Whites fan pundit, Ger Lynch, whether he believes it would be a big blow for his side if they miss out on a deal for Solomon.

Ger would like to see Solomon return to Leeds, although he also believes that the club must be cautious about entering a bidding war with Marseille and has backed his side to consider other contingencies if the winger favours a move elsewhere.

In Ger's view, though, Solomon's previously-stated intention to play in English football's top-flight could be something of a trump card for Leeds.

"The Manor Solomon situation with Marseille, I've seen reports that his agents have had conversations with Marseille," Ger told FLW.

"I think Leeds are probably looking at that in a couple of different perspectives and have got their own desire to bring the player in.

"I think the fee will be a problem or will decide this. If Marseille are offering £20 million and Leeds are offering £20 million, that money is only going to go up and the more clubs get involved, the tougher it gets.

"Solomon himself has said he wants to play Premier League football, which is probably the biggest carrot that Leeds have to offer at this point, and the fact he knows the club and the area.

"He's said he is open to speaking to Leeds about the situation because he enjoyed his time there this year. So I think there is a possibility, a strong possibility that he still comes back to Leeds.

"I think Leeds will look at other players and contingencies, I've seen Franck Honorat from Borussia Monchengladbach linked pretty heavily over the last week or so.

"That looks a relatively credible link and he's a very good player as well, he's missed a portion of the season with injury but finished with 12 goals and assists in 20 games for Monchengladbach as one of their better players.

"So Leeds are having a look at him and the fee mentioned for him is around £10 million. Leeds might push in a different direction and he might end up being better value for them.

"That will be a fact they will need to think about this year because there will be tight restrictions around what they can spend.

"They need to get the players right, so they might need to get better value elsewhere rather than going for Solomon if that fee keeps getting pushed up."

Leeds United cannot waste time with Manor Solomon, Marseille transfer saga

Leeds are evidently ambitious in the transfer market, but they must avoid an over-commitment of time on the Solomon deal.

After all, Marseille are on course to qualify for next season's UEFA Champions League and perhaps have more of a pull factor than Leeds in spite of Solomon's ties to Elland Road.

Last summer, Leeds spent time chasing unrealistic deals for the likes of Emi Buendia, Fabio Carvalho and James McAtee following the departure of playmaking maestro Georginio Rutter to Brighton and Hove Albion. It's no secret that Leeds lacked a natural, creative number 10 in their promotion campaign, but the might of Farke's side and all of its star quality meant that absence was not sorely felt.

The ramifications of failing to sign a productive, goalscoring winger, however, could be far greater and infinitely more damaging in the Premier League, which means Leeds cannot afford to spend excessive time trying to convince Solomon to return when they could simultaneously miss out on other targets.