Leeds United are ready to meet Southampton’s demands regarding a deal for Che Adams.
That’s according to The Athletic’s Phil Hay, who claims that Adams is still the Whites’ number one attacking target for the January window.
Hay revealed that Leeds are ready to meet the Saints hierarchy’s £1 million loan fee demand with an obligation to purchase the 23-year-old in the summer for more than £10 million.
The report suggests that the Southampton board are open to a move, as is the player, however, Ralph Hasenhuttl isn’t thought to be as keen over a move to Elland Road for the forward.
Read Southampton verdict
From Southampton’s point of view, we can see why Hasenhuttl wants to keep hold of the former Birmingham striker.
Adams only arrived over the summer for a fee worth around £15 million, and although he hasn’t scored in 646 minutes of Premier League football, via Whoscored.com, he showed his worth in the recent 2-1 win over Leicester City.
Coming on as a substitute, Adams teed up Danny Ings to net the winner against the Foxes, and with Hasenhuttl fairly short of attacking options, we feel as though the club would be silly to send the player to Yorkshire.
The only way we feel a deal could be worth exploring is if the Saints brought in another forward of their own beforehand.
On the other hand, we can also see why Leeds are desperate to add Adams to their attacking ranks.
He’s netted 34 goals in his last three seasons in the Championship while also providing nine assists, via Whoscored.com, and, in our opinion, could be the difference between the Whites going up or staying in the second tier purely based on his impressive goalscoring return.
