Leeds United transfer target Matheus Cunha would represent a massive upgrade on Tyler Roberts.

What's the story?

Reports in recent days have suggested that Marcelo Bielsa's side are stepping up their talks to sign the Hertha BSC star this summer, with the Whites refusing to give up on his signing.

If they can pull it off, Leeds could get a real upgrade on Roberts.

Massive upgrade on Roberts

Dubbed as a "genius" by Hertha coach Pal Dardai, the £27m-rated forward could come to Elland Road to battle Roberts, or even overtake him and establish himself as a key first team player for Leeds straight away.

The versatile forward notched eight goals and provided another eight assists in all competitions last season, a far cry from what Roberts produced in the Premier League. The Welshman could only score one goal and claim two assists in 27 top-flight outings, leading former Leeds striker Noel Whelan to question whether he's actually good enough for Bielsa's side.

He said: "With Leeds this season, he’s been given a long spell of games to convince Bielsa he’s worth keeping. In my opinion, I’m still undecided. I don’t think he affected the game during his time on the field."

Whelan added: "Is he good enough? In my opinion he isn’t. I would love him to go out there and prove me wrong because I want everyone to succeed. I need him to show me more. He needs to show more fight and desire. I just do not see that."

On the other hand, Cunha has exciting shades of Liverpool's Roberto Firmino about him, with that impressive knack of being able to drop slightly deeper and get his teammates involved, and it's something which has been lauded by the Bundesliga's official website.

A profile on the 22-year-old outlined: "Much like the former Bundesliga star, Cunha honed his skills on the streets of Brazil, giving him a one-up on defenders. He can beat them with his speed, skill or intelligence to drift from his marker, having practiced in every position across the front line.

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"And much like Firmino, Cunha - even when leading the line - can be found dropping into midfield to pick up possession and link up play with teammates. It's part of the reason why he's such a hard attacker to defend against because more often than not, he's not where you expect him to be."

With his ability to both score and provide goals on a regular basis like he showed last season, the £55,000-a-week Cunha would appear to be a big upgrade on Roberts and could become a real game-changer for Bielsa and Leeds if they can lure him to Elland Road.

Meanwhile, Bielsa could finally wave goodbye to this man...