Class is permanent as they say and, as the £6 million Leeds United target rediscovers his golden touch, that weekend brace brought an emphatic end to some temporarily poor form.
Now, attacking depth isn’t much of a concern at Elland Road these days.
Daniel Farke had the luxury of bringing Largie Ramazani off the bench when Leeds United hosted Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday over the weekend.
Scoring one and assisting another in a scintillating cameo display, Ramazani almost single-handedly – with the help of Ao Tanaka’s heel – turned a 1-0 lead into a 3-0 triumph.
Yet, with Manor Solomon’s future uncertain beyond his current loan deal, with Patrick Bamford and Joe Gelhardt facing summer exits, Leeds do appear to be laying the foundations for a potential shake-up of their attacking options.
Leeds reportedly like Real Salt Lake sensation Diego Luna. Swiss league starlet Alvyn Sanches is a ‘concrete’ target at Elland Road. Another name to keep a close eye on, meanwhile, is that of Dor Turgeman.
Dor Turgeman finds form to justify Leeds United links
Leeds were linked with the £6 million-rated Turgeman, who happens to be a friend of Manor Solomon, in mid-December.
But, as he embarked on a run of five straight league games without a goal for Maccabi Tel Aviv, the 21-year-old’s form dried up as he found himself under the microscope and front and centre in the gossip columns.
Now, with Leeds all in on Aston Villa’s Emi Buendia, Turgeman feels like a player likely to be revisited in the summer rather than over the next week or so.
Capable of playing through the middle and wide on the left, Turgeman could help offset the departures of both Bamford and Solomon, should the former and the latter say their goodbyes later down the line.
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s old ketchup bottle metaphor – tap on the glass and watch the goals flow like sauce from a jar – certainly rings true with Dor Turgeman. The Israel forward – a teammate of Solomon’s on the international stage – broke his duck off the bench in a 5-1 hammering of FC Ashdod.
Now, the ketchup won’t stop coming. Nor will the goals. Turgeman found the net again the following week before hitting a brace in Saturday’s 4-1 victory over Maccabi Netanya.
After five games without a goal, that is four in three now for an attacker who, while he still has a long way to go in terms of his consistency, clearly has the talent to put a very impressive run of form together.
In all competitions, Turgeman now has 13 goals in 26 games. An average of one every two matches.
Turgeman delighted to bounce back as he inspires Maccabi Tel Aviv rise
“It’s a privilege to be a starting striker for Maccabi Tel Aviv,” says Turgeman, who displayed a gratious streak too when passing up the chance for a hat-trick as he handed a penalty to his out-of-form teammate Weslley Palati.
“You have to prove yourself and continue to score goals. I’m here and doing the best I can on the field.”
Turgeman’s best, meanwhile, could pave the way for a move to Elland Road.
According to reports coming out of Israel, while Dor Turgeman is dreaming of a switch to Spain, Maccabi Tel Aviv could lower their demands to £4 million in the summer.
Turgeman is currently valued at £6 million – his employers are understandably reluctant to sell in the midst of a title battle – but waiting until the summer could actually be to Leeds’ benefit, even if just from a financial perspective.
“He has become a beast on the field,” Maccabi Tel Aviv coach Zarko Lazetic says, highlighting the sort of work-rate that will appeal to his Leeds-based counterpart Daniel Farke.
“[Turgeman] is great in pressing [and] he scores goals. He is playing in really great shape.”
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