Leeds United to pay Championship rival £2m after automatic promotion confirmed
Leeds United have officially booked their place in next season’s Premier League.
Leeds United will reportedly have to pay Swansea City a pre-agreed bonus this summer due to a promotion-related clause in their deal for Joel Piroe.
Piroe arrived as Leeds’ marquee signing ahead of their return to the Championship in 2023, following the agreement of a deal worth around £12million in total. It is believed around £10m was paid upfront with a further £2m of possible add-ons for the Dutch striker, who signed a four-year deal.
And now BBC Sport report Leeds will pay out that extra £2m, which was to be paid if they were promoted while the former Swansea man was under contract at Elland Road. The Whites’ return to the Premier League was confirmed on Monday evening, with Piroe playing a leading role as they thumped Stoke City 6-0 before watching Sheffield United lose at Burnley.
The 25-year-old scored four first-half goals from four shots as Leeds blew Stoke away, enough to earn him a perfect 10 in YEP chief football writer Graham Smyth’s player ratings. An incredible performance also took Piroe on to 19 league goals for the campaign, with the striker leapfrogging Norwich City’s Borja Sainz as top-scorer in the Championship.
"I always wanted it,” Piroe told BBC Radio 5 Live of his Golden Boot chase. “I said it from the start of the season, one of my targets personally is to get to 20 goals and I am very close now. I still have to keep scoring. It doesn't feel real [being a Premier League player] to be fair. I think the realisation will kick in real quick."
Piroe will expect to reach that 20-goal milestone, with two games left to score just one more goal. Leeds host play-off hopefuls Bristol City on Monday before a final-day trip to relegation strugglers Plymouth Argyle.
Will Joel Piroe be Leeds United’s first-choice striker next season?
With Leeds’ spot in the Premier League now confirmed, focus can turn to a summer in which significant investment will be needed to stand any chance of survival. Reinforcements across the board are necessary but a new striker is expected to be a top priority, given January interest in Southampton’s Cameron Archer.
Piroe and Mateo Joseph are both untried in the Premier League and Leeds might be minded to sign someone who knows the league a little better, with reports already emerging of interest in Brighton youngster Evan Ferguson. The 20-year-old has struggled on loan at West Ham and seen his early development slowed, but there will be plenty of prospective suitors.
Reports do suggest Brighton would be open to selling Ferguson, who not long ago was valued around £100m amid interest from Manchester United and Chelsea. That price-tag is expected to be cut by at least half if the striker is to move on this summer, with Everton among other teams linked.
Your next Leeds United read: When Premier League fixtures are announced following promotion