Leeds United are trying to pull off the kind of signing that changes the level of a squad in one move. Julian Brandt would not just fill Daniel Farke’s No.10 gap.
The Borussia Dortmund playmaker would arrive as the most proven, decorated and versatile attacking player Leeds have signed in the Farke era, since he became Leeds manager back in 2023.
On Friday, the Yorkshire Evening Post’s Graham Smyth reported on X: “Leeds United exploring a deal to sign Borussia Dortmund attacking midfielder Julian Brandt. Free agent.
GET HIM IN: On a free, Julian Brandt would be Daniel Farke’s best Leeds signing 🔥
Better than Ampadu, Rodon and Stach.
“Plenty of good offers on the table for him, believe he has Champions League interest too. Would be a fantastic bit of business though,” Smyth added, confirming Leeds are not alone in pursuit of Brandt.
He would be the best signing of Farke’s Leeds reign. Leeds would not be buying promise, resale value or Premier League-proven reliability. They would get a player who belongs in the Champions League.
The free-agent element matters. Brandt’s contract expires at the end of the season and will not be renewed, which makes this a rare market chance rather than a normal transfer chase.
Brandt’s Dortmund record makes this more than a name signing
Brandt has the profile Leeds usually cannot access. He joined Borussia Dortmund from Bayer Leverkusen in July 2019 and has since made 298 competitive appearances for the club.
The numbers are not decorative. Brandt has produced 56 goals and 68 assists for Dortmund, while also winning the DFB Cup and German Supercup.
That is the key point. This is not a fading reputation being sold to Leeds supporters. It is a body of work built across seven years at one of Germany’s biggest clubs.
Dortmund’s decision not to renew does not weaken the argument. Dortmund’s managing director Lars Ricken said there were open discussions, but Dortmund wanted a clean reset; not a warning sign.
His Germany pedigree would raise the dressing-room standard
Brandt has also done what most Farke signings have not. He has carried a serious international CV into club football that far exceeds any potential teammates at Elland Road.
The 30-year-old is a 48-cap Germany international with three senior international goals. He has also won the 2017 Confederations Cup, the 2014 European Under-19 Championship and an Olympic silver medal.
That matters at Leeds because Farke’s squad needs more than depth. It needs players who have lived in high-pressure games, trained at elite tempo and performed under the weight of expectation.
Brandt brings that immediately. He has played in the Bundesliga, Champions League, Europa League and major international environments, and that would lift the technical and mental standard around him.
Brandt would change the No.10 hierarchy straight away
This is also a positional fit. Brandt is an attacking midfielder, with the ability to play from the right and left, which gives Farke more than a straight No.10. He could also drop deeper into central midfield as an 8.
That is bad news for Brenden Aaronson. Aaronson remains a senior attacking-midfield option, but Brandt would arrive with a record, range and end product that would push him down the pecking order.
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Leeds also have a creative vacancy because Facundo Buonanotte returned to Brighton after his loan. That makes Brandt more than an opportunistic signing. It makes him a direct answer to a squad problem.
Buonanotte did not become the long-term solution Leeds needed. Aaronson has energy and pressing value, but Brandt is different: control, experience, final-third craft and proven output in several roles.
That is why this deal would stand above every other signing of the Farke era. Brandt would bring pedigree, honours, versatility, creativity and value in one move.
If Leeds can beat stronger European offers to him, it would be a stunning piece of business and the clearest sign yet that the club are thinking bigger behind the scenes.
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