Pablo Hernandez features: 3 August transfers Leeds United will want to emulate before Deadline Day | OneFootball

FLW look back at previous late deals that Leeds United have made, with the transfer deadline looming.

Leeds United are expected to be a strong side again in the 2024/25 Championship season, but there are still a number of positions which need filling within their squad.

In terms of key personnel last year, Archie Gray, Glen Kamara, and Crysencio Summerville, and Georginio Rutter have all left the club, alongside other fringe players or loaned-out players such as Diego Llorente, Marc Roca, Sam Greenwood, and Charlie Cresswell. Their outgoing column has been far larger than their incomings.

However, with parachute payments halved in their second year, and reports emerging earlier in the summer that they may have to generate around £100 million in transfer fees, they have been in need of sales. There may be more to come, but Leeds fans will be hoping that attention during the final two weeks of the window will firmly be on signings.

So far, Joe Rodon has come the other way from Tottenham Hotspur as part of the deal for Gray, and Leeds have also recently acquired Alex Cairns and Joe Rothwell over the last month. However, Jayden Bogle's capture from Sheffield United is particularly eye-catching, but there is bound to be more in the way of both incomings and outgoings.

That is unlikely to be the end of them splashing the cash or potentially using the loan market, and Leeds have pulled off some incredible deals late on in the window during their history. Here, we take a look at three signings that the club should be looking to emulate in previous years gone by.

Pablo Hernandez

Possibly Leeds' greatest ever August signing in their history, Pablo Hernandez signed on an initial loan which swiftly became permanent from Qatari side Al-Arabi SC. ‘El Mago’ or ‘The Magician’ was an even better signing than many envisaged, and became the shining light for Leeds during their most recent years in the Championship.

The Spaniard picked up three Player of the Season awards during his time at the club despite joining in his early 30s, and he became the heartbeat of the team. Under Marcelo Bielsa, he played some of the best football of his career, which culminated in that promotion in 2019-20. He scored or assisted 77 goals in 175 games for Leeds.

Leeds have lost Rutter to Brighton and require a player of real quality, even if they are a little older. A true playmaker who can be a difference-maker and match-winner in the final third is now paramount. A player of Hernandez's quality and calibre would be the ideal player for Farke's attacking unit right now, with the German needing to strike a balance between his attacking quartet.

Glen Kamara

Glen Kamara signed for Leeds from Rangers late in the summer transfer window in 2023, with the midfielder penning a four-year deal at Elland Road that ran until the summer of 2027. They may have since sold him, but a No.8 in central midfield is required again this summer, and one late on in the window.

Leeds saw Marc Roca, Weston McKennie, Adam Forshaw, and Tyler Adams depart the club last summer to weaken their pool of midfield options. In their place, Kamara, Ilia Gruev, and Ampadu came in to bolster Farke's side, whilst Archie Gray was fast-tracked into the first-team. Despite signing Joe Rothwell, Leeds have not replaced both Gray and Kamara yet this summer, leaving them light in midfield.

Therefore, they will be in the market for a midfielder of good quality late in the window. Not many were available for a fee as reasonable as the one to sign Kamara, for a player of his experience and talent. The fee to bring him to the club was confirmed to be around the £5 million mark and has proved to be a real bargain, given his experience at international level, and with Rangers in the Champions League. Emulating that sort of transfer again is necessary for Leeds.

Joel Piroe

To be very clear: Leeds do not need another striker or central forward player who scores goals like Joel Piroe, but he is exactly the sort of statement signing that they need to make again this summer. Initially reported to be £10 million plus add-ons, the figure could eventually rise to £16 million for the Dutchman from Swansea City.

A winger or wide forward at a side in mid-table moving to Leeds late on in the window would be of the same ilk as Piroe's move to the club last summer. With just a few days left before the deadline, Leeds sent out a message to the rest of the division by signing one of the league's most fearsome goalscorers.

A big-money signing akin to that in Jack Clarke, Jon Rowe, or Ilias Chair would be a similar statement. Leeds have to sign a few forwards for both depth and quality, and although they can look abroad, they should also be looking within the league they are in. They need to pull a few rabbits out of a few hats, and did so last year by acquiring the likes of Piroe and Kamara in key positions late on.