Free Agent Now Out Of Reach For Leeds United, Signing For Serie A Side | OneFootball

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Diogo Leite, who Leeds United were keen on signing this summer, is now set to complete a move to Serie A side Lazio as a free agent, putting him out of reach for the Whites.

The 27-year-old is currently without a club after his four-year stint with Bundesliga side Union Berlin ended earlier this summer, with Leite deciding to seek a new challenge.

The Portuguese defender made 136 appearances for Union Berlin, attracting interest from clubs across Europe and emerging as a notable option in the free agent market.

Leite became the subject of Premier League interest earlier this summer, with Leeds in particular claimed to be ‘pushing hard’ to sign him in June.

The Portuguese though has been keen to take his time about deciding what to do and Leeds did not hang around, signing Tarik Muharemovic and Nico Elvedi to boost their defensive options.

Leite is now set to end his free agent status, with a move to Italy to happen.

The Portuguese has now arrived in Italy and signed a three-year deal with Lazio, according to La Lazio Siamo Noi.

Lazio have also included an option in the contract to extend the agreement for a further year, until 2030.

Whether Leeds will regret missing out on Leite is unclear, but given the injury to Joe Rodon, Daniel Farke might feel that the Portuguese would have been worth adding outside the transfer window.

Rodon will be out until at least after the next international break, in what is an early injury blow to Farke’s defensive options.

Signing Leite would have offered extra depth, especially with Farke liking to play with three centre-backs.

He must now hope that Nico Elvedi can quickly get himself up to speed in the Premier League, while his other options remain injury free.

Another player the Yorkshire club missed out on was Mykhailo Mudryk, despite Leeds doing everything to try and get a deal for the Ukrainian.

Leeds have made a decent start to their second season back in the Premier League, as they remain unbeaten in their first three league games.

The Yorkshire club will now travel to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea