Leeds United are pushing to bring in more players before the end of the summer transfer window. However, the club also have one eye on departures, and the exit of one player has become a lot more complicated ahead of the September 1st transfer deadline.
The Whites confirmed the arrival of their 10th new signing of the summer on Monday when they announced the arrival of James Justin from Leicester City. The club have paid a fee of £10m for the versatile defender, who can operate in both full-back positions and also fill in as a centre-back when needed.
Justin’s arrival was expected to allow Isaac Schmidt to leave the club in the ongoing transfer window. The defender has been keen to move on from Elland Road after spending last season on the fringes of the team.
The Swiss defender wants to play in the World Cup next year, and has had a deal in place to join German club Werder Bremen on loan for weeks. He was waiting for Leeds to sign his replacement.
Can you name these 10 former Leeds United strikers?
Leeds United defender Isaac Schmidt’s move to Werder Bremen has collapsed
Justin’s arrival was almost certain to lead to Schmidt joining Werder Bremen on loan with an option to buy before the September 1st transfer deadline.
The defender had agreed to a deal in principle, and Werder Bremen were in contact with Leeds and his representatives to finalise the loan move.
However, the delay in securing his replacement has cost Schmidt the move to Germany this summer.
According to DeichStube, Werder Bremen are on the verge of signing Southampton full-back Yukinari Sugawara in the ongoing transfer window.
The defender is already in Germany to undergo his medical, and an agreement is in place between the two clubs for him to join the German outfit.
With Sugawara on the verge of joining them, Werder Bremen no longer need to sign one more full-back, and they are unlikely to make a move for Schmidt.
Schmidt is facing an uncertain future at Leeds
Schmidt was already a bit-part player at Leeds, and the arrival of James Justin has pushed him further down the pecking order.
The defender thought he had a move lined up to Werder Bremen, but that door has closed just days before the end of the summer transfer window.
Leeds are keen to move him on, and Schmidt also wants to leave as he is almost certain to play very little football this season if he stays at Elland Road.
His representatives are working hard behind the scenes to find a new club for the Swiss defender before the end of the window on Monday night next week.
Shame for Schmidt, never been convinced by his defending but thought he had something when he played on the wing. Not really suited to the Premiership. A loan to a championship club until January would do him good perhaps.
Media reports confuse me: https://www.theleedspress.com/green-light-given-as-leeds-united-set-to-agree-3m-deal-44434/
That’s because a lot of these writers produce articles purely to create advertising space, and do so by re-writing other people’s articles which can often be a week or so out of date. Not sure which one of these two is the correct one but one of them is wrong!