Leeds are homing in on their first signing of the summer, according to Phil Hay.
The former Yorkshire Evening Post journalist claims that 20-year-old striker Rafa Mujica is set to complete his move to Leeds after bidding farewell to Barcelona on his Twitter page.
Will be signing for Leeds United shortly. Twenty-year-old and Spain U19 international who is coming from Barcelona’s B squad:https://t.co/EKrtrcR3Cy
— Phil Hay (@PhilHay_) June 27, 2019
Mujica joined Barca in 2015 and made 33 appearances for the B side last season, scoring seven goals.
This comes after journalist Angel Garcia claimed that Mujica would sign for Leeds when his contract expired at the end of June. That means that Mujica could be formally announced as early as Monday.
VERDICT
We imagine that Mujica will be heading for the Under-23s first, although we’ll get a clearer idea when he arrives for pre-season. We say that as he hasn’t been mentioned among Leeds’ primary summer targets, Helder Costa, Ryan Kent, Jack Harrison and Ben White. His record at Barcelona isn’t prolific, with just seven goals in 33 games last season, and 10 in 60 overall, but he does offer versatility, with the ability to play in any of the three forward positions. He also offers pace, direct running and the ability to finish from inside and outside the box. It’s fair to say that Mujica never fulfilled his potential at Barcelona after a fast start. He only played in friendlies for the senior team, making his debut against Celtic and then scoring his first goal against Leicester in 2016, when he was just 17, after being on the pitch for just five minutes. Under Carlos Corberan and Marcelo Bielsa he’ll now get the chance to develop and push for a place in the Leeds first-team. That could be a big ask if Leeds sign all the players they want. With Patrick Bamford and Kemar Roofe as strikers, Leeds want to bring in Harrison, Costa and Kent on the wings, with Jack Harrison departing. Leeds fans can get a glimpse of what he offers on this YouTube highlights reel.