Leeds United are set to miss out on Luton Town defender James Justin as Brighton close in on his signature, according to the Sun.
The newspaper claims that the Premier League side have had a £1.5million bid accepted for the League Two sensation and are weighing up whether to send him straight back out on loan.
It is understood that Luton were unable to prevent any interest from a top-flight club.
News outlet Football Insider reported on Friday that Brighton were leading the race for the 18-year-old ahead of Leeds
It was reported that Thomas Christiansen’s side had made an approach for the right-back after senior defender Luke Ayling suffered a season-ending injury.
Good move for Leeds?
Justin is an emerging talent in League Two and has already made 56 senior appearances at the age of 18.
The Whites could do with an additional option in the right-back position for the second half of the season and the England Under-20 international is a rising star.
However, he does have no experience at a higher level and much like many of the club’s January targets they are stars for the future.
This Is Futbol rating: 5/10
Likely to happen?
Leeds’ hopes of signing Luton’s attack-minded full-back appear to be over after Brighton had a seven-figure bid accepted.
Christiansen is running out of time to bring a new defensive recruit in the January window and Gaetano Berardi looks set to be the first-choice right-back moving forward.
This Is Futbol rating: 1/10