Leeds could land Augustin 2.0 with Orta “in talks” to sign “prolific” £21m talent - opinion

Leeds United appear to be ramping up their interest in Paris Saint-Germain starlet Arnaud Kalimuendo as the Premier League club’s search for a new centre-forward continues.

As per journalist Graeme Bailey, the Elland Road outfit are “in talks” to sign the 20-year-old this summer, with the reported fee set to be in the region of €25m (£21m) for a player who impressed last season on loan at Lens.

Writing on Twitter about the Yorkshire club’s interest in the youngster, the transfer insider stated: “Leeds United in talks to sign PSG striker Arnaud Kalimuendo and they are close to agreeing €25m deal.”

In his attached piece for 90min, Bailey reported that the Whites have made the young Frenchman their ‘number one target’ to bolster their forward line and are seemingly ‘confident’ of getting an agreement over the line.

There will no doubt be much excitement regarding a player who netted 12 Ligue 1 last season during his temporary stint away from the Parc des Princes – having once been labelled “prolific” by talent scout Jacek Kulig – although supporters may be wary of a repeat of a previous transfer disaster.

Like Kalimuendo, former Leeds flop Jean-Kevin Augustin was also a highly-rated product of the PSG youth system, although he ultimately failed to deliver in his brief stint under Marcelo Bielsa at Elland Road, having been plucked from RB Leipzig on an initial loan deal in January 2020.

The former France under-21 international was expected to help with the Whites’ promotion push in the second half of the 2019/20 campaign, although he ultimately went on to make just three appearances totalling a mere 48 minutes, having been unable to get up to speed with Bielsa’s intense style of play.

The club had agreed to an