Leeds United are keen on signing Al Sadd goal machine Baghdad Bounedjah and are preparing an “important offer”, according to Le Buteur.
The Algerian publication claim the Championship promotion hopefuls have reignited their pursuit of the striker after failing to sign him over the summer.
Le Buteur report Leeds were put off by Al Sadd’s £13.4million valuation of Bounedjah during the most recent window but are ready to return to the negotiating table due to the player’s stunning goalscoring exploits.
Good move for Leeds?
It is difficult to tell whether Bounedjah could replicate his amazing exploits in Qatari football in the English Championship. Certainly, his goal record is phenomenal. The 27-year-old has netted 55 times this calendar year, including a barely-believable 26 goals in his last 13 league matches. In 57 appearances for Al Sadd, the front man has a Roy-of-the-Rovers style return of 78 goals. Were he capable of a one-in-two return in west Yorkshire, Bounedjah would be worth every penny of the £13.4million price tag. But it would be a huge leap in the dark for Leeds to spend such a princely sum on a player ripping it up in a footballing backwater. He is a 19-times Algeria international, but there must be question marks over whether he could succeed at Leeds.
This Is Futbol rating 4/10
Likely to happen?
Unless Marcelo Bielsa is conning everyone when he says he doesn’t expect to buy any players in January, this deal would appear extremely unlikely given the costs involved. Moreover, there is said to be some top-level competition, too, with French big guns Marseille and Leeds hot on the heels of Bounedjah.
This Is Futbol rating 2/10