Leeds United are set to open new contract talks with in-form winger Jack Harrison.
What’s the discuss?
That’s in accordance with a report by Soccer Insider, who declare that, after rejecting a £20m+ provide from Newcastle United for the 25-year-old in the summertime switch window, Victor Orta and Jesse Marsch are actually able to open contract talks with the previous England U21 worldwide in a bid to increase his keep at Elland Street.
The report goes on to state that, with simply 16 months remaining on Harrison’s present deal, coupled with Newcastle’s reported curiosity in launching a contemporary transfer for the attacker in January, Orta and Marsch are hoping the ahead pens an extension that not solely deters curiosity in his companies but in addition displays his standing as a key member of the Whites first workforce squad.
Orta should act
Following a summer season of uncertainty regarding Harrison’s future at Leeds, the 25-year-old has rapidly confirmed precisely why Orta was reported to be demanding a determine within the area of £60m in an effort to think about parting with the winger forward of the 2022/23 marketing campaign.
Certainly, over his six Premier League appearances up to now this season, the £25.2m-rated ahead has been in distinctive attacking kind, having already scored one aim, registered three assists – the joint third-most within the league – and created 4 huge probabilities for his teammates – additionally the joint third-most within the division.
The £15k-per-week ahead has additionally made a complete of 18 key passes – with solely Manchester Metropolis’s Kevin De Bruyne (25) and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (24) having made greater than the Englishman – and accomplished 14 dribbles – rating him joint sixth within the league, alongside Newcastle United’s Allan Saint-Maximin and Liverpool’s Luis Diaz.
These returns have seen the previous New York Metropolis FC starlet common a merely sensational SofaScore match ranking of 7.22, not solely rating him as Marsch’s second-best performer within the league but in addition because the Thirty sixth-best participant within the English prime flight as a complete to date in 2022/23.
Moreover, the 25-year-old can also be extremely efficient in a defensive capability, with FBref rating Harrison within the prime 3% of attacking midfielders and wingers in Europe’s huge 5 leagues for blocks per 90, in addition to the highest 8% for clearances, the highest 14% for pressures, the highest 15% for tackles and the highest 17% for interceptions during the last 12 months.
As such, contemplating simply how vital the Englishman is inside the Whites’ first-team squad, it might seem extraordinarily advisable for Orta to do all the things in his energy to tie Harrison all the way down to a brand new deal at Elland Street – as shedding the winger this winter would undoubtedly come as a devastating blow to Marsch and his aspect.
Certainly, whereas it’s true that the Whites’ reported January switch goal Cody Gakpo would symbolize an distinctive addition – having scored an astonishing ten targets and supplied 9 assists over 13 fixtures for PSV Eindhoven this season – it’s clear to see that Leeds already possess “among the finest wingers within the Premier League” – within the phrases of Frank Lampard – and will do all the things they will to maintain a maintain of him.