Leeds United missed out on their fair share of transfer targets during their time in the Premier League.
Josko Gvardiol, Rodrigo de Paul and Cody Gakpo are among those who spring to mind instantly, but there is another – perhaps less glamorous name – who is really shining this season.
Having wasted much of the window chasing Charles de Ketelaere, Leeds were in need of a striker back in the summer of 2022 as they looked to ease the load on injury prone Patrick Bamford.
Leeds never ended up bringing in a new number nine but one man who Jesse Marsch was keen to bring to Elland Road was Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Hwang Hee-Chan, who he had worked with earlier in his career.
According to the Athletic, Leeds saw an ‘informal approach’ of around £17 million knocked by Wolves, which signalled the end of their pursuit of the 27-year-old.
Hwang now on fire for Wolves
Hwang was not the big named striker many Leeds supporters were hoping to find, and given his record in the Premier League, perhaps rightly so.
Prior to this season, Hwang has scored just eight goals in 57 Premier League appearances, which was hardly the prolific marksman Leeds needed in their squad.
However this season, Hwang has turned it around and more than proved his doubters wrong, scoring as many Premier League goals in the opening 15 matches, as he had done in the previous two years.
Marsch remained keen on signing Hwang in the January window earlier this year, but other members of staff at Leeds were not convinced and Georginio Rutter was signed instead.
Given that Marsch was sacked just days after the close of the window, it was probably a good job that Hwang was not signed by Leeds, but he is certainly proving his doubters wrong this season.
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