"Prefer a Premier League move but" - Pundit offers Leeds United hope of clinching Man City deal in January | OneFootball

Carlton Palmer has urged Leeds to zone in and complete a January swoop for reported transfer target James McAtee

Pundit and former England international midfielder Carlton Palmer has offered Leeds United hope of striking a deal for Manchester City's James McAtee – claiming that the Etihad outfit may prefer a Premier League loan but will want him playing regularly.

Leeds are likely to seek midfield reinforcements in the next window after both Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev suffered respective long-term injuries, while they're also yet to replace Georginio Rutter following his transfer to Brighton and Hove Albion back in the summer.

Brenden Aaronson has returned to the fold to fill Rutter's position in the team and is currently going some way to rebuilding a broken relationship with the Whites faithful, although he's not an out-and-out attacking midfielder in the mold of the Frenchman and there is a school of thought that a marquee acquisition in this area of the pitch could help Leeds over the line at the second time of asking in the promotion race.

Leeds fell short of promotion last season by losing out in May's play-off final to Southampton, though they've recovered well and are firmly within contention this time around and stand every chance of finishing in the top two come the end of the campaign.

Leeds United's interest in Man City's James McAtee

According to a recent report published by LeedsLive, the Whites are interested in striking a January loan deal for McAtee, who is believed to have been a target for a "number of windows".

It very much appears as though Leeds are intent on reigniting their interest in McAtee after missing out on a deal in the summer. Following the conclusion of the window, Whites chief executive Angus Kinnear confirmed that the Man City playmaker had been a target before Pep Guardiola elected to keep him around the first-team squad instead, while the likes of Fabio Carvalho, Emi Buendia and Gus Hamer were also identified in various ambitious bids to replace the aforementioned Rutter.

The report from LeedsLive additionally claims that the Citizens are willing to sanction a third loan exit for McAtee, who has found regular minutes difficult to come by after returning from two successful seasons on loan with Sheffield United.

Leeds could swoop to complete a loan deal, although McAtee could also leave Manchester on a permanent basis and, should that be the course of action, the Whites would effectively be ruled out of the running.

As per The Guardian, Leeds are said to face competition from Premier League duo Fulham and West Ham United, who will both be better-placed to meet the potential fee in excess of £20 million which has been suggested. In the Championship at least, Leeds simply won't be able to compete with those sorts of figures despite collecting significant transfer fees over the last year.

Carlton Palmer urges Leeds United to seal deal for Man City's James McAtee

Palmer has encouraged Leeds to try and broker a deal in January for McAtee, whom he was impressed with across the previous two seasons while watching him in action for Sheffield United.

McAtee scored nine league goals to help the Blades to promotion from the Championship in the 2022/23 season and was one of few players to emerge with credit from the previous campaign after returning on loan, where he managed to catch the eye in the top-flight despite the side's dismal relegation.

Though McAtee gained invaluable Premier League experience, he's still finding it difficult to make his mark at the Etihad Stadium. The 22-year-old has currently played just one minute of top-flight football all season, although he has impressed in rare opportunities in both the EFL Cup and UEFA Champions League.

"Leeds United are looking at a loan move for James McAtee," Palmer exclusively explained to Football League World.

"McAtee is a fantastic player, he was on loan at Sheffield United last season and the season before, and he was outstanding in midfield.

"Of course, Man City would prefer a Premier League move but he needs to be playing regular football. Leeds, in the position they are, they're going to be pushing for automatic promotion, what he needs is to be playing regularly.

"Leeds are sweating on the fitness of midfield players, they may get them back in January, they may not, unfortunately. So they've got to move for some quality, and he is proven quality. He helped Sheffield United get promoted, he was outstanding, and even though they struggled in the Premier League, he was outstanding again.