Leeds move to secure Tom Lees with a pay rise

Lees signed a new contract last September, committing himself to Leeds until 2015, but manager Neil Warnock has moved to enhance his terms again after being impressed with his performance.

Warnock praised Lees’ performances, saying: “Tom’s been the one bright spark at the back. He’s got a lot to learn and he made individuals errors but he’s improved his all-round game and he was almost the first name on my teamsheet. I can’t give him a bigger compliment than that.”

Warnock, who signed Jason Pearce from Portsmouth last week, said: “There’ll be a lot of competition for places. I’m looking to sign a few defenders.

“He can play at right-back and, as much as he might not like that, you need utility players.”