Leeds United transfer rumours as two shock moves tipped and target breaks silence on state of play

Leeds United are reportedly considering moves for two midfielders that have starred in Italian football’s top flight in recent seasons.

Italian news outlet ASRoma Live have reported the Whites have a keen interest in two Serie A stars and have suggested there are plans to make moves for Roma stalwart Lorenzo Pellegrini and Inter’s Piotr Zielinski next summer. Of course, such moves would depend on Leeds preserving their Premier League status between now and the end of the season - but the reports do at least hint of the ambition being shown by the Elland Road hierarchy.

Pellegrini would bring vast experience after he made over 300 appearances for Roma since joining the club from Sassuolo during the summer of 2017 and has also gone on to earn 36 senior caps for Italy. The 29-year-old is out of contract next summer and the report claims no firm decision has been made over his long-term future at the Stadio Olimpico.

Zielinski is two years older than Pellegrini and he became a Serie A champion and Coppa Italia winner during an eight-year stay at Napoli before making a free transfer switch to Inter last summer. The 101-times capped Poland international remains under contract with the Serie A giants until the summer of 2028 but is yet to make a start in any competition so far this season.

Whites striker target opens up on ‘tough’ period

Leeds United were linked with a whole host of strikers during the summer transfer window as they looked to boost Daniel Farke’s options in the final third ahead of their return to the Premier League.

Strikers from La Liga, the Premier League, Ligue 1 and Serie A were all named as possible targets and a move for Dominic Calvert-Lewin came to fruition after the striker’s contract at Everton came to an end. However, there was a desire to add at least one more frontman to the Whites ranks and that led to interest in Fulham striker Rodrigo Muniz. Several other clubs were believed to be keen on the Brazilian and he seemed to hint at how the reports impacted on his mindset ahead of the new Premier League season in a recent interview.

Speaking to the Premier League’s official YouTube account, the Cottagers star said: “This game (opening day vs Brighton) was a little bit strange. Two weeks before, it was two tough weeks for me in the head. I went to the game because I’m a professional guy, I knew I was going to score, I knew I needed one chance to score and I scored in the last minute, it was really good.”

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