Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa has been handed a major boost in his club's chase for Sheffield Wednesday defender Osaze Urhoghide.
What's the story?
Reports in recent weeks and months have suggested that Bielsa is very much interested in luring the 20-year-old to Elland Road, and now The Star have delivered a major update on his future.
They reported that, amid uncertainty at Hillsborough, and Wednesday's inability to offer the financial package he could get elsewhere, Urhoghide looks set to be on his way out of Hillsborough when his contract expires this summer.
The report added: "The Star understands that Urhoghide has not yet made a final decision on where he will be playing his football next season, but has put regular first team football and stability on the top of his wish list rather than financial gain – with several clubs at various levels banging down the door to try and get him on board."
He silenced Bielsa and Elland Road
After a win over Barnsley in March, Owls manager Darren Moore heaped praise on the "immense" 1.88m (6 foot 2) defender, telling The Star: "I don’t like to pick out individuals because I thought they were all excellent, but he was immense today in terms of his performance. In terms of his contacts, in terms of getting in the radar of the opponents and spoiling it - he was absolutely rock solid.
"The back three will take plaudits, and it was a team effort, but if you’re looking at him as an individual I thought his performance was solid today."
The talented 20-year-old would surely have already caught Bielsa's eye when Leeds took on Sheffield Wednesday at Elland Road back in January 2020, when the Owls turned up at the home of their Yorkshire rivals and clinched an impressive 2-0 victory over the Whites.
Urhoghide, who was
playing at right-back on the day, looked particularly impressive, snuffing out Jack Harrison with ease and being a physically dominant presence.
As per
Sofascore, he won a team-high seven duels and three tackles, while he also came up with three clearances and one interception, showing his all-round defensive strength.
It wasn't just going back towards his own goal where he really stood out either, with the 20-year-old also showing really promising signs further forward as he completed three out of his four attempted dribbles (only Jacob Murphy had more) and drew one foul.
Urhoghide was an absolute monster at both ends of the pitch in that 2-0 win at Elland Road, and it's no surprise that Leeds have been linked with a move for him.
[snack-amp-story url="https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/leeds-united-marcelo-bielsa-transfer-gossip-rumours-news-elland-road-rodrigo-de-paul" title="Read the latest Leeds transfer rumours and news!"]
Now that he's set to leave on a free transfer, Bielsa has the perfect chance to land him this summer.
Meanwhile, a journalist has spoken about Leeds' "big priority" this summer...
