Leeds eye last-ditch Aaronson alternative in "very special" £10m gem, Bielsa needs him - opinion

Leeds United are plotting a late move for long-time transfer target Lewis O’Brien before Monday’s deadline…

That’s according to The Sun on Sunday [30/01, page 62], who claim that the Whites will ‘try again’ to sign the Huddersfield Town midfielder after missing out on him during the summer.

Leeds are yet to conduct any business this January transfer window and are in desperate need of additions to Marcelo Bielsa’s squad.

It’s believed that the Yorkshire giants are prepared to pay his £10m release clause ahead of the deadline in a little over 24 hours’ time. The 23-year-old only signed a new deal at the John Smith’s Stadium last year.

United have been left frustrated in their attempts to sign Brenden Aaronson from RB Salzburg this month. After having bids of £15m and £20m rejected by the Austrian champions, it appears their attentions have turned elsewhere towards an alternative.

O’Brien has been a crucial part of the Terriers’ fine form in the Championship this season as they battle for a place amongst the playoffs.

As per WhoScored, he is their highest-rated player for the season so far, averaging a rating of 7.11. He also leads the squad for tackles (2.7 per game) and dribbles (2.1 per game), which suggests he’s the main man in winning back possession and driving the team forward.

Oh, how Marcelo Bielsa could do with that right now – not at least because of the injury crisis at Thorp Arch, in which star midfielder Kalvin Phillips is out until March, at the earliest.

Only Stuart Dallas is managing more tackles in midfield this season, though some of that number must be attributed to the fact that he has often filled in at full-back, whilst it’s just Raphinha putting up more successful dribbles, which is understandable,