Leeds United have had their fair share of big transfers over the past few years. The Whites are not traditionally considered a selling club, but they have managed to make some huge profit off of sales.
Just last summer, the club made close to a £100million from selling Archie Gray, Crysencio Summerville and Georginio Rutter. Despite Leeds having different approaches to the transfer market over the last few years, they have guaranteed a big sale almost every summer window.
Victor Orta’s approach involved signing high potential youngsters, this was what brought Summerville and Struijk to England. Now, one is the captain of the team, while the other was sold for a huge profit.
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Club president regrets Leeds United deal
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When the Whites were last promoted to the Premier League, they signed a Brazilian from France. He came to the Premier League with a relatively unknown reputation. In just two seasons, he put the division on notice. After two years, Barcelona came calling, and Leeds sold Raphinha for around £50million.
Olivier Letang, who was Rennes president when Raphinha joined the club in 2019, recently spoke to Eurosport about what happened in the summer of 2020:
“The version is very clear. Raphinha wanted to stay at Rennes and play in the Champions League. He was pushed out.
“I remember the day he called me, in shock, saying: ‘My president, they want me to leave.’ He was very, very disappointed. But once he understood what was going on behind the scenes, he no longer wanted to play for certain people.
Letang then answered whether it was a ‘mistake’ to sell him to Leeds United for just £17million.
“I think that based on his career, which, once again, is no surprise given his qualities and mentality, the answer is very simple. I’m convinced he would have had a fantastic second season with Stade Rennais if he had stayed,”
Raphinha is one of the best signings Leeds have made in recent years
Signing a player and selling him for close to three times the fee in two years is a remarkable achievement. Raphinha did not leave Elland Road on a bad note either, he gave his everything during his time at Leeds United.
The club need to sign more players like him. And Daniel Farke could do exactly that by signing Manor Solomon this summer.
