"Raise the standards" - Leeds United urged to complete deal for international midfielder | OneFootball

FLW's Leeds United fan pundit has talked up the possibility of signing 1. FC Köln midfielder Dejan Ljubičić.

Highlights

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 lack depth and quality in midfield following the departures of Glen Kamara and Archie Gray and are said to have had a bid rejected by 1. FC Köln for midfielder Dejan Ljubičić.

The first bid worth €4 million (£3.4 million) has been knocked by Köln, according to German outlet BILD. The 2. Bundesliga outfit’s managing director Christian Keller has stood firm on the offer from the Whites for the Austrian international's services.

Ljubičić has been with Köln since 2021, and made 26 appearances in the German top-flight last season. The midfielder was a regular presence in the side as they finished 17th in the table, suffering relegation to the second division of German football along with Darmstadt.

Köln have previosuly turned down interest from Wolfsburg for the midfielder just 12 months ago, but recent relegation could open the door for an exit from the German club this summer, with Leeds one of the clubs most interested.

After midfield departures of their own, Leeds need to replace both Gray and Kamara with more than just Joe Rothwell. The 29-year-old loanee has bolstered Leeds' ranks and should bring more goals and creativity to Daniel Farke's team from the middle of the park.

However, following the further departures of Darko Gyabi, Marc Roca, Lewis Bate, and Jamie Shackleton this summer, Leeds are light in midfield areas. Another player in the box-to-box role with serious output could help make Leeds an even more impressive team from midfield next year, and give them the required depth for another automatic promotion push.

The verdict on Dejan Ljubičić's links to Leeds

It remains to be seen what kind of fee could convince Köln to accept a bid for the 26-year-old, but Leeds are likely to return with an improved offer. It is understood that the German side are preparing a contract offer to try and tie down the player to a longer-term deal, but he is unlikely to agree to fresh terms:

FLW’s Leeds United fan pundit Kris Smith believes that a deal makes sense from Leeds' perspective, he said: "When looking at how Leeds set up in the first half-an-hour on Wednesday, with Ilia Gruev pressing high from the midfield axis to create the high turnovers, it really showed how Farke wants to set up in his midfield pivot this season.

"It makes a lot of sense that we are looking to replace Kamara with a box-to-box midfielder, and a player like Ljubičić who has a really good engine on them.

"There are improvements that can be made on someone like that, because his goal and assist record in the Bundesliga wasn't great or anything to really shout about. "There's also obviously the concerns that Leeds have been crying out for a creative player to pick up the ball and unpick locks against teams that sit deep every week, but he certainly fits for what Farke would want from his midfielder. "He'll squeeze the play high to win the ball in high places, and he's obviously got top-flight experience playing in the Bundesliga. He was even one of Köln's best players for quite a while.

"He's got a good enough skill-set to come to Leeds and essentially just raise the standards of our midfield."

Midfield is an area where Leeds could use one more signing to strengthen Farke’s options for the season ahead, and a peak-age player with strong physical attributes makes plenty of sense, even if Leeds fans may also be asking for a more technical footballer next to Ethan Ampadu at the base of midfield.

If he doesn’t sign a new deal, then the German side will have to consider a sale this summer in order to avoid losing him for nothing in 2025. In that sense, it feels like a deal that should be struck, much like Jayden Bogle and his contractual situation with Sheffield United.

It's likely that an agreement will be found, which will give Leeds Rothwell, Ampadu, Gruev, and Ljubičić as midfield options. It appears, on paper at least, to be a strong pool of players for an assault on automatic promotion, even after losing key players such as Gray and Kamara.