Leeds have already been impacted by developments over at the London Stadium this month.
West Ham have agreed a deal for Taty Castellanos ahead of Leeds – who are said to have tracked the Argentine ever since his days at New York City.
West Ham may also take Raheem Sterling out of reach for Leeds. If the Hammers sign Adama Traore from Fulham, the Cottagers are expected to take the Chelsea outcast as a replacement.
Now – according to TEAMtalk – West Ham are making progress on another deal which will have an impact on Leeds as Charlie Cresswell weighs up a move to east London.
Charlie Cresswell now considering move to West Ham after 2024 Leeds United exit
Dean Jones claims that West Ham are preparing a bid for the England U21 international – who rose through the youth ranks at Elland Road before Daniel Farke sold him to Toulouse for £3.8m in July 2024 – and he is open to joining.
Did Leeds United make a mistake by letting Charlie Cresswell leave? 🤔
“I was there since I was 11. I wanted to live that dream. I wanted to play for Leeds. I wanted to be part of that journey, but these things happen in football.
“You don’t always get your way and your path’s meant to go in a different direction, but it’s turned out well. I couldn’t be happier.”
Charlie Cresswell on leaving Leeds – The Athletic, 2025
The east Londoners are said to be preparing a bid for Cresswell, and believe they have the finances to strike an agreement with Toulouse this winter.
This impacts Leeds in two ways. Firstly, the Whites negotiated a 15% sell-on clause when selling the central defender to Toulouse, so a welcome chunk of cash could be heading to Elland Road just as Leeds are experiencing PSR concerns ahead of a June 30th financial deadline.
The Athletic believe Toulouse want £22m for Cresswell, so Leeds could earn roughly £3.3m if West Ham wrap this deal up.
It also affects Leeds in the relegation battle.
West Ham are currently sitting 18th and find themselves seven points behind Leeds, but signing Cresswell to pair with Castellanos will undoubtedly improve the mood around the London Stadium and give Nuno Espirito Santo renewed hope that he can keep his side up.
Leeds United also want a central defender and could sign player similar to Charlie Cresswell
In an ideal world, Leeds would have the finances to reverse Farke’s mistake and bring Cresswell back to Elland Road.
However, the Daily Mail believe Leeds only have £25m to play with this winter, so it would be bizarre to spend £22m of that on a new centre-back just to deputise for the injured Joe Rodon.
Should Leeds sign a replacement for Joe Rodon or finally hand Sebastiaan Bornauw a chance? 🤔
The Belgian has played just two minutes of Premier League football since his £5.1m move from VfL Wolfsburg in July… 😬
However, a much cheaper option is being considered in Danilho Doekhi, who has now entered the final six months of his contract with Union Berlin and is available for a cut-price fee.
Interestingly, Doekhi plays like Cresswell – statistics site FBREF actually say the Leeds academy graduate is the defender most similar to the Dutchman across Europe in the last 365 days.
Due to his contract situation, it is not entirely out of the equation that Union Berlin may even entertain a sale for the £3.3m fee West Ham could end up giving Leeds as part of the Cresswell deal.
Whatever happens, it is clear the Hammers mean business this month as they aim to drag Leeds back into the relegation battle.
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