In the end, the transfer window ended with a whimper rather than a roar at Championship leaders Leeds United.
Daniel Farke’s hopes for a new number ten went unanswered as Emi Buendia swapped Aston Villa for Bayer Leverkusen and Alvyn Sanches opted to stay in Switzerland until the summer.
Links with the Russia-born Armenian playmaker Eduard Spertsyan, meanwhile, went quiet as Leeds United opted instead to put all their faith in the players who had taken them to the top of the table in hte first place, now looking to storm across the line and into the promised land of the Premier League.
Spertsyan is valued at around £17 million by Krasnodar. As such, would likely have been too expensive for a club on a Championship budget anyway.
But secure promotion – Leeds took a big step towards that as the ‘unplayable’ Dan James, Manor Solomon and Joel Piroe destroyed Watford in Tuesday’s 4-0 Hertfordshire hammering – and suddenly £17 million for a footballer of Spertsyan’s talents would not seem quite so prohibitive.
Eduard Spertsyan open to £17m Leeds United transfer from Krasnodar
Speaking to Russian publication Championat while breaking his silence on another window full of speculation, Spertsyan insists that did not discuss a move to Elland Road with one-time Krasnodar boss Daniel Farke.
But nor did he rule it out.
“Why not?,” Spertsyan says when asked if he would consider a move to Leeds later down the line. “They will most likely get into the Premier League, they are in first place.”
Like Leeds, Krasnodar are also enjoying the view from the summit. They are narrowly ahead of Zenit St Petersburg, and dreaming of a first-ever Russian Premier League title.
Spertsyan admits that a January departure was never really on the cards this year. But, come the summer, both he and his club will be ready to sit down and listen to offers.
“Yes, I want to leave, but I can’t leave the club [in the winter],” adds the two-time RPL Midfielder of the. Year. “For them to let me go in the winter, the offer must be very good, and the club must have a great desire to sign me.
“This winter, that’s exactly what didn’t happen.”
Spertsyan confirms interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus
Perhaps this is a deal Leeds always planned to pursue in the summer, with the added allure of top-flight football and a greater financial footing.
Eduard Spertsyan was labelled ‘one of the best midfielders in Europe’ back in 2023 by a former Krasnodar coach, while providing 14 goals and 14 assists in a single season.
The talented 24-year-old has seen his numbers drop since then, however, with the likes of Manchester United icon Andrei Kanchelskis feeling Spertsyan must leave Russia now or risk seeing his development stall further.
Spertsyan has frequently been linked with some of Europe’s A-list institutions. He now confirms that there was truth to the reports suggesting he could have ended up at Paris Saint-Germain or Juventus, while also admitting interest from Ajax, Girona and Lens.
“For PSG, my agent was in Paris. She had some communication about me, and that’s it,” Spertsyan adds, his former Krasnodar teammate Moti Safonov now the back-up goalkeeper at the Parc des Princes.
“There was interest and communication from Juventus. Girona approached Krasnodar with an offer in the summer. I was ready to go to Lens too. But, to be honest, their gave Krasnodar less for me than Ajax gave the year before.”
Interestingly, Leeds United held talks to sign Khvicha Kvaratskhelia when a little-known Georgian winger was developing his talents over in Russia with Rubin Kazan. Nearly four years later, Kvaratskhelia would swap Napoli for PSG in a deal just shy of £60 million.
If Leeds are to ensure that lightning does not strike twice, Sperstyan feels like an opportunity worthy of serious consideration.
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