With less than 48 hours left in the transfer window, Leeds United remain open to spending up to £40million ($54.8m) in a position where they already employ arguably their most important player. While they hope to strengthen their strongest link, it’s fair to wonder whether they should reinforce their weak point before it’s too late.
Crystal Palace went into the weekend doing the hokey-cokey with Wolverhampton Wanderers over Jorgen Strand Larsen. If they can get close to sanctioning a £50m package, as reported by The Athletic last week, you have to think it’s a done deal when Leeds are not prepared to go a penny beyond £40m.
However, there has been more than enough doubt cast on Palace forking out such a hefty fee, particularly with uncertainty still swirling around Jean-Philippe Mateta’s future in south London. United’s offer remains on the table at Molineux. It remains to be seen whether Wolves accept what might prove to be the firm bid or, instead, opt to retain their Norwegian striker.
Neither manager Daniel Farke nor the club’s supporters are going to turn down the chance to improve their front line, even if Dominic Calvert-Lewin is already fitting the bill there. After all, Strand Larsen could add the goals which keep Leeds in the top flight.
As we saw in the home win over Chelsea, a front two, with Calvert-Lewin alongside an equally imposing striker, can be devastating for Leeds. It feels like a luxury to be dropping tens of millions of pounds in a position which is not at the top of their to-do list, but striking when an opportunity arises is how the best clubs operate.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin has been in fine form this season, and might thrive alongside a striker like Jorgen Strand Larsen (Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images)
However, has Saturday’s unsurprising loss to Arsenal shone a light on an alternative route to direct those funds before 7pm on Monday night? Could Leeds spend part of the £40m they evidently feel they can raise in another position to make a bigger difference to their season?
The prospect of adding a fifth senior goalkeeper to the ranks coached by Ed Wootten at Thorp Arch seems wild, but there’s a fair argument to say it could improve the club’s chances of staying in the Premier League.
Karl Darlow has generally been fine, in the Championship and Premier League, when called on by Farke, but is that enough when you are describing a relegation-threatened club’s starting goalkeeper?
The own goal conceded against Arsenal on Saturday will weigh heavily on him, as the cameras showed when he bellowed an expletive into the sky. The third concession did not cast Darlow in a great light, either, as he committed to his right before throwing a weak left palm in the other direction.
These moments did not decide the game against classy opponents, but they brought a burning issue back to the boil as Leeds face down the final 14 matches of the campaign. If Farke is lacking faith in his two starting options between the sticks, should Leeds act while they can?
“Our board knows exactly my feelings (on) what I think we should do during this window, but, as I mentioned several times, I won’t speak publicly too much about my opinions because it makes the market just more difficult,” said Farke in his post-match press conference when asked if a new goalkeeper had been discussed.
“Sadly, I can’t answer honestly the question. So, of course, we’re always looking to improve the squad and to bring quality players in, especially in positions where we are perhaps a bit weaker.
“That’s for sure, but I don’t want to speak too much about this because I concentrate on the players I have available and try to be there with the best possible decisions.”
Whether Farke wants to articulate specifically how he feels or not, that answer was hardly a ringing endorsement of what he has between the sticks. The manager’s own decisions on who wears the gloves reflect his state of mind on them both.
Lucas Perri has been dropped after conceding too many preventable goals (Zach Forster/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Before the campaign started, as The Athletic reported at the time, Lucas Perri was something of a compromise between the manager and the club’s recruitment staff. A final decision on which goalkeeper to pursue in the summer was one of the most contentious debates of the window, internally.
Perri, who cost £13.9m with £1.7m in add-ons from Lyon, was the middle ground that most satisfied decision-makers. The fact the Brazilian was then dropped by Farke after conceding several preventable goals plants him firmly at second place in the pecking order.
In Farke’s eyes, Darlow failed to outshine Illan Meslier from August 2023 until April 2025, when he finally took the gloves for good after the Frenchman’s errors proved too much to bear. Darlow finished last season as first choice but was, again, demoted by Farke in the summer after Perri’s arrival.
Aside from the evident issues Farke has had with his main goalkeepers, the fact Meslier is still in the building, collecting a significant salary as a third-choice stopper, is hard to believe. Had he been shipped out last summer, it may have been easier to countenance signing another goalkeeper in this window.
Illan Meslier is now Leeds’ fourth-choice goalkeeper (Ed Sykes/Getty Images)
Senior sources at Elland Road, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, have told The Athletic every position has been debated in recruitment meetings between Farke and decision-makers for the January window. They say the priority is always available and affordable targets who can make a material difference to the starting line-up.
As it stands, that pool of difference-making goalkeepers is considered extremely small. Conversely, while Strand Larsen may play in a similar role to United’s most important player, he has difference-making quality and could, seemingly, be available and affordable.
It may just be that, if Leeds do land their chosen man, they hope to outscore their way to safety in May, while Darlow or Perri is trusted to prove the doubters wrong between the sticks.
