Habib Diarra speaks out after Sunderland outbid Leeds United in £30million transfer battle

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Habib Diarra looked at one point recently like he was about to become the latest summer signing at Leeds United. But Sunderland had other plans.

Leeds United have made a steady start to the summer transfer window, with Daniel Farke having now welcomed three new players to Elland Road.

The latest is Sebastiaan Bornauw. Leeds have completed a deal to sign Bornauw from Wolfsburg and he joins Jaka Bijol and his former Wolfsburg teammate Lukas Nmecha in making the move to West Yorkshire.

And it takes the club’s summer spending to roughly £20million: £15million on Bijol and £5million on Bornauw.

This summer, Leeds United have a £150million transfer budget and Farke was ready to spend a chunk of that on signing Habib Diarra, who’s now signed for Leeds’ Premier League rivals Sunderland.

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Sunderland confirm the signing of Leeds United transfer target Habib Diarra

Leeds United made multiple bids to sign Diarra from Ligue 1 Strasbourg. It looked like a move was gathering pace before Sunderland joined the race for Diarra, and Fabrizio Romano then confirmed that Sunderland were set to sign Diarra this week with Leeds unwilling to match Sunderland’s £30million bid.

Of course, the news went down well on Wearside, whilst Leeds United fans voiced their concern about the Diarra saga, which has reached its conclusion. Sunderland have announced that the 21-year-old midfielder has signed a five-year deal with the club and the Senegalese international has spoken out after completing his move to England.

He told the club: “I’m happy and excited to become a Black Cat and I can’t wait to discover the Stadium of Light and its fans. Everyone saw last season’s success and I guarantee that I’ll give everything for this team and fight for these colours in the Premier League. I’m ready for this challenge and I can’t wait to get started.”

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Keith Downie reveals the details of Habib Diarra’s move to Sunderland

Leeds United are linked with a number of midfielders right now. After Farke has signed two new defenders and a striker, it looks like we’ll see the German put a lot more focus on trying to sign a new holding player this summer.

But that player won’t be Diarra. Posting on X, Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie has revealed how Diarra completed his medical but is currently in his native Senegal, where he’ll now take a break following international duty and link up with his new teammates later in July.

The deal is worth £30million with £27million coming up front. The Black Cats see Diarra as a replacement for Jobe Bellingham who’s already joined Borussia Dortmund this summer.

For Leeds United, this saga is over and Farke needs to push on with other midfield targets. Though it certainly seemed like Diarra was the one he wanted and missing out on him to a promotion rival is certainly a blow.