Leeds United on verge of Brenden Aaronson signing, according to report

The American played under coach Jesse Marsch at the Austrian club, but Leeds's interest in the 21-year-old pre-dates Marsch's appointment.

Leeds had bids for Aaronson rejected in January, but Salzburg wanted to keep their prize asset with a Champions League knockout tie against Bayern Munich in February/March.

The Whites decided against signing anyone else in that position, preferring to come back for their top target in the summer.

Aaronson caught the eye with his performances against Bayern as his club drew the first leg, only to lose 7-1 in Bavaria. Salzburg won the domestic double last season.

But Leeds now look set to complete the deal for a fee thought to be in the region of £23m.

Marsch brought up the topic of Aaronson in a press conference in April, explaining how the process would work.

“The whole talk with with Brenden Aaronson, this all happened before I even came here," he said.

“Now I know Brenden, I coached him and he’s an American and I think he’s a great player.

“But even when he came to Salzburg, Salzburg found him or knew about him before and came to me before he even came and then we worked together to think this was the right player for us so that’s how I like to work and that’s what I think is really important with scouting."

Like the majority of leading clubs these days, Leeds operate a continental-style model with director of football Victor Orta identifying and recruiting players after discussions with the head coach.

Aaronson joined Salzburg in 2020, having previously played for Philadelphia Union and their feeder club Bethlehem Steel.