Leeds United at Elland Road. (Photo by Jon Super - Pool/Getty Images)Leeds United at Elland Road. (Photo by Jon Super - Pool/Getty Images)
Leeds United at Elland Road. (Photo by Jon Super - Pool/Getty Images)

Leeds United transfer news: Chelsea want key Elland Road talent, Whites target set to stay put

Even the most ardent Leeds United fan has probably been taken aback a little by the pace at which Patrick Bamford has started this season.

The striker has been a standout performer for the Whites this season, and has already wracked up 11 goals in 21 top flight outings at a rate of one every 163 minutes.

That’s not a bad return by anybody’s standards, and it’s perhaps unsurprising that the 27-year-old has started attracting interest from elsewhere.

According to Don Balon, new Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel is eager to take the hitman back to Stamford Bridge.

Bamford spent five years on the Blues’ books but was sent out on loan for the vast majority of that stint, and failed to make a single senior appearance before being sold to Middlesbrough in 2017.

Still, it’s hard to deny that he is in red hot form at the moment, and with marquee signing Timo Werner scoring just four times in the Premier League this season, it’s unsurprising that Tuchel is being linked with potential reinforcements.

Elsewhere, Leeds might struggle to get a deal over the line for reported summer target Cameron Brannagan.

The Whites were linked with a move for the Oxford United midfielder last year, as per Football Insider, with Burnley also said to be keen.

Evidently, nothing came of that speculation, and according to U’s boss Karl Robinson, any effort to prise the player away will now take a significant amount of money.

As quoted by the Oxford Mail, he said: “We’re very well-protected by the length of Cameron’s contract and the buyout clause [in his contract].”

Millwall are understood to have launched a bid of around £500,000 for the player last month, but the buyout clause in his contract is said to be considerably higher than that.

The 24-year-old came through Liverpool’s youth system, and has established himself as a key member of Oxford’s squad in League One.

Despite an extended period on the sidelines he has made eight appearances in the league this season, and started the campaign with the captain's armband.

We’ve gathered the rest of this afternoon’s Premier League rumours below.