Leeds United's January transfer shortlist: Arsenal talent and Liverpool player should be among those on it | OneFootball

FLW outline three players Leeds United should have on their transfer shortlist ahead of the January transfer window.

Like many other Championship sides, Leeds United may well need reinforcements in January to get promotion over the line, especially given how thin some areas of their squad are at present.

Daniel Farke has seen his side decimated by injuries during the first half of the 2024/25 season, and even though Leeds made eight new additions to their squad in the summer, and also welcomed back the likes of Max Wöber and Brenden Aaronson, they still have a few problems to overcome.

Farke has a squad of around 23 first-team players for their latest promotion push, and 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.

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. Defensive-minded midfielders are not plentiful, while centre-back numbers are thin on the ground.

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. 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. Here, we outline some of the players they could be scouting and considering ahead of a potentially huge window for Leeds.

Ethan Nwaneri

Ethan Nwaneri is undoubtedly highly-regarded by Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, but he could solve some of Leeds' problems and play more regularly in the process at Elland Road. He has played very late on in a couple of Premier League games and secured a brace in the League Cup against Bolton Wanderers, but there are fewer guarantees of first-team football opportunities at the Emirates compared to a developmental Championship loans.

It's no secret that Leeds have looked at playmakers previously. 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. Nwaneri is well down the pecking order with Arsenal and senior game time at any level s necessary, but he could be a highly effective signing for all parties in a ball-dominant Leeds side, where he will have plenty of opportunity to flex his creative muscles.

A player who could operate as a central or attacking midfielder would be of huge benefit and his creativity and eye for goal as well as his link-up play could be the difference in the final third for Leeds. It would also help in 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.

The teenager only signed his first professional contract with the Premier League side earlier this summer, but already has a glowing reputation as one of the finest young players in the country. With that in mind, the Gunners may want to send the player out on loan for rest of the campaign, where he can really be tested in the men’s game, and get some valuable minutes under his belt rather than biding his time on the bench for Arteta.

Carl Rushworth

Continuity is the key to promotion in many areas, especially for the players that took Leeds to the cusp of promotion in 2024. Despite that, Leeds clearly have an issue between the sticks with Illan Meslier, who has made high-profile errors against Portsmouth, Norwich City, and Sunderland already. There is no doubt that he is one of the weaker links in the starting line-up and lacks consistency.

That is something they may wish to address, and one answer could be current Hull City loanee, Carl Rushworth. The Brighton academy product is yet to start in a game for Hull, with Ivor Pandur maintaining his spot as No.1 for Tim Walter, which is no doubt a frustration to both Rushworth and his parent club.

The recent Swansea City loanee is simply too good to be wasted on a bench of a Championship side, and he is also at an age where regular game time for his development is required. It is contingent on Meslier's form continuing, but should it do so and Rushworth continues to be a substitute, then some sort of deal could be struck in January for him to move from East to West Yorkshire to further his education and improve Leeds' primary stopper.

Rushworth could be an upgrade on the Frenchman in reliability and consistency terms after a fantastic season in South Wales. The goalkeeper won the Swans' Player of the Season award, and he has also starred during previous loan spells with both Walsall and Lincoln City in the EFL, and was perhaps hoping for a move to the Premier League or to a side challenging for promotion out of the second tier.

Not only that, but he was born and raised in nearby Halifax, so the familiarity of West Yorkshire could help him to settle in quicker. Leeds should be keeping tabs on his situation during the next few months, in case their current goalkeeper's form dips even further. He is destined for a high level one day and a loan to Leeds could be beneficial to both him and Leeds, with a promotion on his CV an ideal thing to have for his next steps during summer 2025.

Tyler Morton

Leeds are particularly light in terms of midfield options following injuries recently sustained by Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev, and Liverpool's Tyler Morton could and should be an option they are considering. 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, then the club's cover is young Charlie Crew.

One of the solutions could be Morton, as 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 many young players, 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.