Leeds could forget Hamer with ambitious swoop for “incredible” free agent

Leeds United head into the first international break of the 2024/25 campaign sitting in fourth place in the Championship table after four matches.

The Whites started the season with back-to-back draws with Portsmouth and West Bromwich Albion, 3-3 and 0-0 respectively, before losing 3-0 to Middlesbrough in the League Cup.

However, they have since bounced back from their disappointing start with a 2-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday and a 2-0 win over Hull City, with the latter coming at Elland Road on Saturday.

Mateo Joseph and Joel Piroe scored the goals for the Whites in West Yorkshire at the weekend to secure all three points for Daniel Farke‘s side.

That clash with the Tigers came less than 24 hours after the summer transfer window slammed shut on Friday night, after months of incoming and outgoings at Elland Road.

The likes of Archie Gray, Georginio Rutter, Crysencio Summerville, and Glen Kamara all secured permanent exits from the club over the summer.

Meanwhile, Leeds brought in Largie Ramazani, Manor Solomon, Ao Tanaka, Alex Cairns, Jayden Bogle, Joe Rothwell, Joe Rodon, and Isaac Schmidt.

The Whites did, however, fail in an attempt to make a ninth addition to Farke’s playing squad in the final few days of the summer transfer window.

Leeds failed to sign Championship star

It was reported that Leeds were interested in a deal to sign attacking midfielder Gustavo Hamer from Championship rivals Sheffield United towards the end of the month.

The Yorkshire-based outfit reportedly made an initial offer of £13m to secure the former Coventry City star from Bramall Lane, but that was not enough to tempt the Blades.

It was also claimed that the Whites went back in with a second bid that included Joel Piroe going to Chris Wilder’s side, along with an undisclosed fee paid to the relegated side.

However, Sheffield United had no interest in signing Piroe as they did not believe that he suited what they needed in their squad, and the Dutchman went on to score for Leeds against Hull after the deadline passed.

Their failure to convince the Blades to part ways with the midfielder, who produced four goals and six assists in the Premier League last season, was a shame as he is a proven Championship performer.

As you can see in the table above, Hamer has recorded an eye-catching 22 direct goal contributions in his last 45 appearances in the division for Coventry and Sheffield United combined.

The 27-year-old magician is an attacking midfielder who can provide a huge threat as both a scorer and a creator of goals at Championship level.

However, the Dutch wizard will now continue to showcase his quality in South Yorkshire, rather than West, with Wilder’s side for the rest of this season, or at least until January.

How Leeds can forget about Gustavo Hamer

Leeds did not land an alternative number ten option before the summer transfer window officially slammed shut on Friday night but that does not mean that they have their hands tied behind their back until the winter.

The Whites can still dip into the market to attract free agent options at any time, as players who are not contracted to a club can still make moves in the coming days and weeks, despite the window being closed.

There are plenty of high-quality players who have yet to find a new team to play for this season and that means that there is still a chance for Farke to add an attacking midfielder to the group to bolster his side’s play-off chances.

Per Transfermarkt, there are a number of attacking midfielders who are without a club at the moment, including Dele Alli, Iker Muniain, Rafinha, and Anton Miranchuk.

Leeds, as they do not have to pay a transfer fee to a team to secure their services, could be ambitious with their free agent target and go for a high-quality option.

The most valuable free agent attacking midfielder, per Transfermarkt, is former Lille number ten Yusuf Yazici, who is valued at €10m (£8.4m) by the site.

Why Leeds should swoop for Yusuf Yazici

The Whites must now attempt to convince the Turkey international to move to England to play in the Championship, as it would allow the club to move on from Hamer and forget about the Sheffield United man.

Aged 27, Yazici is not in the final throes of his career, and is the same age as Hamer in fact, and could come in at the peak of his powers for Leeds.

It will not be an easy move to get done, though, as it has been reported that Olympiacos, Galatasaray, and Nice are among the teams interested in signing the free agent, which is another reason why this would be an ambitious transfer for the 49ers to pull off.

If they could convince Yazici to move to Elland Road, though, he has the potential to be an excellent addition to the squad, after an impressive year with Lille.

The Turkish whiz, who was once dubbed an “incredible” talent by former Arsenal star Mesut Ozil, racked up 12 goals and four assists in all competitions for the French side.

As you can see in the table above, Yazici was directly involved in seven goals in 27 appearances, whilst Hamer was involved in three more in nine more outings in the Premier League.

The free agent ace scored more goals in nine fewer matches in a major European league and this suggests that he could arrive at Leeds and provide a big goal threat, if he can improve his output by playing at a lower level in the second tier in England.

Yazici, who scored 29 goals in 135 matches for Lille during his time in France, could allow Farke to forget all about Hamer by coming in as a fantastic option in the number ten position, which is why the club should launch an ambitious swoop for his services.