Nottingham Forest preparing to elbow Chelsea and Leeds United aside in race for £6m talent

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Leeds United are being linked with many new players ahead of the January transfer window but one of those is starting to appear on the shortlists of multiple Premier League clubs.

Daniel Farke expects a quiet January window for Leeds but in the back of his mind, he will know that Leeds failing to bring in more than Connor Roberts last January helped Ipswich finish ahead in second.

There are a couple of areas in Farke’s squad that requires improvement. Farke could be looking for a long-term replacement for Junior Firpo on the left side of the defence. Besiktas want Firpo in January, too.

Competition for Brenden Aaronson has long been lacking, while the need for a prolific no.9 is still large. However, one player on Leeds’ radar is Dario Essugo with the Sporting Lisbon ace on loan at Las Palmas.

• READ MORE: Brighton want to raid Leeds again for another mainstay under Daniel Farke

Premier League clubs circling for Leeds target Dario Essugo

Leeds are hoping a £6m loan bid tempts Sporting to cancel Essugo’s loan at Las Palmas, where the 19-year-old has impressed this season. Essugo’s form has also caught the eye of Barcelona and Real Madrid.

On the weekend, it was then reported that Chelsea were considering a move for Essugo. A player that was handed his professional debut by now-Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim at 16, while at Sporting.

Now, football website On The Minute claim another Premier League side have joined the race to land Essugo. Indeed, Nuno Espirito Santo’s in-form Nottingham Forest are interested in a deal to sign Essugo.

Which club would suit Dario Essugo best at this stage?

With his burgeoning reputation on the rise, Essugo needs to join a team able to give regular game time. The chances of him getting that at Chelsea, Barcelona or Real Madrid seems unlikely, with their options.

So, either Essugo stays put where he is getting constant game time in a top-tier side and continue to gain traction or he takes a risk and moves to England. He could easily break his way into Forest’s line-up.

But at Leeds, with Ethan Ampadu back and Ilia Gruev likely to return towards the end of January, you have to question why Leeds are potentially interested in landing the Portuguese talent ahead of the window.