Leeds United made a bid to sign Bournemouth defender Chris Mepham on loan but it was rejected by The Cherries – and now that decision has been explained by TalkSPORT reporter Alex Crook.
Mepham, 26, is struggling for game time at Bournemouth. The Wales defender has only played nine times all season under Andoni Iraola – with the likes of Marco Senesi and Illia Zabarnyi preferred.
Fabrizio Romano recently reported that Leeds and Sheffield United approached Bournemouth to sign the £12m defender. However, Bournemouth rejected both bids to land their 34-times Wales defender.
Leeds are busy on deadline day with a move for his Wales teammate Connor Roberts from Burnley on the cards, while Mason Holgate – currently on loan at Southampton from Everton – is being linked.
But a move for Mepham is now off the table, and TalkSPORT’s Crook told Give Me Sport that injuries at Bournemouth saw a move for Mepham to Leeds hit the skids. It shows we want a centre-back, though.
“They tried for Chris Mepham, at Bournemouth, but that got rejected because they are short-handed, defensively, due to injuries,” Crook reported on deadline day, in quotes published by Give Me Sport.
Why Leeds bid for Chris Mepham was rejected by Bournemouth
Mepham would have been a fantastic signing – a player that partners Joe Rodon in central defence for Rob Page’s side, and is a big fan of the Leeds defender. But, a move was always going to be difficult.
While he is not starting for Bournemouth, he is first in reserve in the middle of the defence at Iraola’s side. Leeds and Bournemouth have done business, but Bournemouth were always going to reject us.
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