Rangers FC v Middlesbrough: Who is paying more & can afford Leeds United’s Joel Piroe? | OneFootball

The striker could be on his way out of Elland Road after a lack of gametime

Leeds United have enjoyed an impressive first season back in the Premier League under Daniel Farke, with an upturn in fortunes towards the back end of 2025 providing a springboard for their survival bid and run to the FA Cup semi-final.

Although safety is still not mathematically guaranteed for the Whites, it has been predicted by many that they are likely to stave off relegation ahead of the likes of Nottingham Forest, West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur.

Despite the stature of the Elland Road club being well-documented, they struggled to reconsolidate their position in the top-flight between 2020 and 2023, and their relegation under Sam Allardyce three years ago is a scenario the hierarchy in LS11 will do their utmost to avoid in the coming seasons.

As such, an important summer transfer window is in the offing for Farke and his side, as they look to progress forward, and that means that a handful of players on the fringes of his regular starting lineups and matchday squads appear to have been deemed surplus to requirements.

One of six attackers who falls into said category is Dutch-born Suriname international, Joel Piroe, who, despite being well-known for his goalscoring exploits in the Championship for the Whites and Swansea City, hasn't been able to translate such form into the Premier League, as he sits behind the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha in the pecking order.

As such, it has been reported by TEAMtalk, that the man who has been the subject of constant exit talk for a while, has emerged as a summer target for Middlesbrough and Scottish Premiership giants, Rangers.

With that in mind, Football League World have debated which side could be in pole position to secure a deal from a financial standpoint.

Joel Piroe's estimated wages at Leeds United amid Middlesbrough, Rangers transfer talk

Despite starting the opening matches of the season against Everton and Arsenal, the 26-year-old has played a bit-part role for Leeds this season, and the summer will mark three years since his move from South Wales in a deal worth in excess of £10m.

The aforementioned transfer with Swansea saw the former PSV Eindhoven man put pen-to-paper on a four-year contract, meaning if no extension is agreed, which appears to almost certainly be the case, Piroe will be out-of-contract in June 2027 regardless.

According to Capology, a site which ESTIMATES player earnings, the forward is one of the middling earners at Elland Road this season on a weekly salary of £40,000 - £60,000 less than top earner, Calvert-Lewin, who is the only man in Farke's squad collecting a pay packet of £100,000.

Four of Piroe's teammates also earn the same ESTIMATED wage, albeit the amount of gametime earned by Joe Rodon, Gabriel Gudmundsson, Ethan Ampadu and Wilfried Gnonto is significantly higher.

Can Middlesbrough financially outmuscle Rangers in the race for Leeds United's Joel Piroe?

The large elephant in the room, of course, is that Leeds and Rangers now hold links through 49ers Enterprises, which has also seen transfer speculation surrounding current Hull City loanee, Joe Gelhardt, and the Ibrox club emerge.

However, looking at this potential battle from a financial viewpoint, there isn't the data to suggest that one club could be an outright winner in this transfer battle, even though Rangers look set to offer Piroe some form of European football, whilst Boro are pushing for promotion.

Capology ESTIMATES state that Middlesbrough have the eighth-highest wage bill in the Championship this season with a weekly figure of £405,769.

Unsurprisingly, a large bulk of said figure is taken up by Newcastle United loanee, Matt Targett, on £60,000, while ex-Leeds man, Luke Ayling, is the highest permanently contracted figure on £30,000 per week.

Meanwhile, up in Glasgow, Salary Sport ESTIMATES that Spurs loanee, Mikey Moore, is the Light Blues' top earner on £44,000 per week ahead of another loanee on £39,000 per week in the form of Wolves centre-back, Nasser Dija.

It is said that the highest-paid permanent member of Danny Rohl's squad is Max Aarons at £39,000 per week, showing that Rangers do have the financial muscle to acquire Piroe.

However, that doesn't mean Middlesbrough won't necessarily fight tooth-and-nail for his signature, having struggled for goals in the centre-forward department all season despite investing big in Slovakian striker, David Strelec, last summer.