Leeds United are hopeful of finalising the signing of striker Joe Gelhardt this week after having a bid accepted by Wigan Athletic, Football Insider understands.
The Yorkshire giants have faced strong competition from the likes of Everton, Celtic and Rangers for the highly rated 18-year-old.
A Leeds source has told Football Insider that the framework of a deal for Gelhardt is now in place after an agreement on the fee was reached with Wigan’s administrators in recent hours.
The wonderkid had previously been valued at around the £5million mark by Wigan after graduating from their youth ranks to make a strong first-team impression.
But Leeds will pay considerably less for the England Under-18 international, which is set to be an initial £1m topped up by various add-ons.
United have taken advantage of Wigan’s parlous financial state after they announced entering administration last month.
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The club have been forced into a fire sale of their prize assets to preserve their Football League status.
Gelhardt has come through the ranks at Wigan to make 21 first-team appearances in total, 19 of which have come this season.
Most of those matches have been as a substitute and he has scored only a single goal but his fleeting glimpses have encouraged top clubs he is a rare talent.
The rising star is poised to become Leeds’ third signing of this summer after Illan Meslier and Helder Costa.
In other news, Leeds United are working on a deal to sign a brilliant Belgium centre-forward in cut-price deal.
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By: Wayne Veysey
Title: Leeds United set to sign striker this week after bid accepted
Sourced From: www.footballinsider247.com/exclusive-leeds-united-set-to-sign-striker-this-week-after-bid-accepted/
Published Date: Tue, 04 Aug 2020 06:00:02 +0000
