Leeds United and Aston Villa-linked goalkeeper 'closing in' on £25m move to Sunderland

The 25-year-old was loaned out by the Blues last season and excelled in Ligue 1 with Strasbourg, playing under former Hull City boss Liam Rosenior.

Reports suggested clubs were queuing up to prise Petrovic from Stamford Bridge on a permanent basis, with Leeds and Aston Villa among those linked.

However, the Serbia international appears to be closing in on a move to a heavy-spending Premier League outfit.

Sunderland close in on Djordje Petrovic

Sunderland are showing plenty of ambition in the transfer market and according to The Telegraph, are close to sealing Petrovic’s signature.

He is believed to have asked Chelsea to be left out of their Club World Cup squad to allow him to line up a move.

The Black Cats are making a habit of signing players linked with Leeds, having recruited Petrovic’s former Strasbourg teammate Habib Diarra and being close to the signing of Union Saint-Gilloise midfielder Noah Sadiki.

Leeds United’s goalkeeper department

For the bulk of the last five years, Illan Meslier has been the first-choice goalkeeper at Elland Road. He joined the Whites on loan in 2019 and after leapfrogging Kiko Casilla in 2020, sealed a permanent switch.

He has since 214 appearances for the club, although his future now looks uncertain. Having previously been dislodged by Joel Robles in 2023, Meslier lost his spot to Karl Darlow for the Championship run-in last term.

The Frenchman made a series of costly errors and lost the faith of manager Daniel Farke, meaning pastures new could be on the horizon.

Leeds have been linked with a clutch of stoppers, with Newcastle United’s Nick Pope and Lyon’s Lucas Perri.

While a new goalkeeper is yet to arrive in LS11, Leeds have recruited defenders Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw, as well as forward Lukas Nmecha.

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