Leeds United journalist Phil Hay has shared an update on the Yorkshire club’s transfer pursuit of Brighton and Hove Albion defender Ben White.
This comes after the latest episode of The Phil Hay Show in which the Athletic journalist talked about a range of topics concerning Marcelo Bielsa’s side.
On the subject of White, who Leeds have been trying to sign on a permanent basis this summer, Hay shared this update on the situation.
He said: “It’s very difficult to speak for Ben White, but from what I understand, he is keen on a move to Leeds and he does appreciate the amount of progress and the way he’s developed under Bielsa and in that season in the Championship.
“I think there’s also a feeling deep down that he has been given a chance at Leeds that wasn’t there at Brighton – and wasn’t necessarily going to be there at Brighton until he played as he did, and Brighton, in their defence, might say, ‘well, that is the proof or the evidence we needed to see that there was a definite Premier League player in there.’
“But they haven’t been able to extend his contract so far, they haven’t been able to raise his salary, the numbers and the figures that have been put to him have been accepted, and he does have a contract to 2022, but I think in order for there to be a feeling of commitment down there – and this isn’t to say that Brighton would feel forced into selling him – but in order for them to feel like the commitment was there, you would think that he would have to take up a new deal, and Leeds know that if he does that and he signs a new contract down there, then that transfer is absolutely dead in the water.”
The 22-year-old spent the 2019/20 season on loan at Elland Road and made a massive impact during his time there playing under Bielsa.
After making a total of 46 Championship appearances for Leeds, White earned himself a season rating of 7.09/10 for his performances, making him Leeds’ fifth-highest-rated player for their recent promotion-winning campaign.
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TIF Thoughts…
After it was recently reported that Leeds have now had a third bid of £25 million to try and sign White rejected by Brighton, it seems as though Brighton are very keen on keeping hold of their young defender this summer.
As Hay mentioned in the podcast, if White were to sign a new deal at Brighton then that would seemingly be the nail in the coffin for Leeds’ chances of signing the Englishman during the current summer transfer window.