Leeds United were keen on signing young winger Ilias Akhomach on a free transfer in the summer.
Akhomach made the decision to leave Barcelona at the end of contract following the completion of last season and at one stage, Leeds were believed to be at the front of the queue, according to Sport.
Victor Orta was the man at the forefront of Leeds’ pursuit of the 19-year-old but his departure at the beginning of May all but ended any chance of him coming to Elland Road.
However, according to Akhomach, it was actually his decision not to join Leeds following discussions with his family, who mutually decided there was ‘something he didn’t like’ about moving to England.
In the end, Akhomach opted to remain in La Liga and join Villarreal on a free transfer, though he has not exactly made a barnstorming start to life at his new club.
Leeds may have dodged a bullet not signing Akhomach
Since his move to the Yellow Submarine, Akhomach was been handed just two league starts from a possible 13 matches, registering just one assist.
That is also despite the fact Villarreal have struggled considerably so far this season, sitting on 12 points from a possible 13 matches, considerably worse than over the last few years.
While clearly Akhomach is still young and has plenty of time on his side, you could argue this is a bullet dodged for Leeds, especially considering the club’s relegation.
Leeds have an abundance of wingers at their disposal already and adding another inexperienced one to the squad would’ve made little sense to anybody, aside from Orta, of course.
It is hard to see just how Akhomach would’ve been able to dislodge any of Leeds’ four first choice wingers from the squad, and with that in mind, it is probably a good thing he snubbed a move to West Yorkshire.
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