Leeds United have been linked with numerous players since their promotion was confirmed; however, one position currently appears the most likely to be filled first.

That position is at centre-back, with Leeds currently exploring their options to fill the role. The Whites have just returned to the Premier League after an excruciating, but reasonably entertaining, two-year stint in the Championship.

Alongside their fellow promoted sides, Sunderland and Burnley, Leeds are currently one of the favourites to be relegated. It is no surprise, as all newly promoted sides were immediately relegated over the last two seasons.

Jaka Bijol is the latest and currently strongest link that Leeds United have in terms of an incoming transfer, with the Whites trying to make a deal of roughly £15m for the Udinese leader. It won’t be easy to complete the transfer, however, as Bijol is reportedly also being hunted by AS Roma and AC Milan.

Why are Leeds United targeting the centre-back position?

While there are often issues at both ends of the pitch for newcomers to the Premier League, a major downfall is often the inability to cope with some of the best forward lines in the world.

In the 2024/25 season, the three relegated sides conceded 248 goals; in the 2023/24 season, the relegated trio conceded 267 goals. Sheffield United conceded 104 goals that season, a record amount in the Premier League.

It isn’t always doom and gloom for newly promoted sides. In the 2022/23 season, all three sides managed to survive, with Fulham finishing in 10th.

While there are outliers, a common theme amongst successful newcomers is the ability to defend. Brentford conceded just 56 goals in 2021/22, their first-ever season in the Premier League, and Fulham conceded only 53 in 2022/23; 27 fewer than Leicester managed to let in this season.

Both Brentford and Fulham targeted key defensive players who would be vital for their survival. Fulham brought in goalkeeper Bernd Leno, centre-back Issa Diop, and defensive midfielder João Palhinha; Palhinha was the club’s Player of the Season that year.

Brentford DM Christian Norgaard was the supporters’ Player of the Season in their first season; centre-back Jefferson Lerma was the Daily Echo Bournemouth Player of the Season [voted for by the fans] in their first season returning to the top-flight, and so on.

The step up to the Premier League

The Leeds United defensive line in the Championship this recent season has been nothing short of brilliant. Pascal Struijk, Joe Rodon, and often Ethan Ampadu would command their defensive positions, according to Opta Data, conceding just 26.5 expected goals from the opposition (xGA), the lowest in the league, with Burnley having the second-best defence with 39.1 xGA.

The abilities of the Whites’ centre-backs allowed full-backs Jayden Bogle and Junior Firpo to advance up the pitch, with the duo making 24 goal contributions across the season. The usual centre-back pairing, Rodon and Struijk, also contributed to the attacking effort by making 484 progressive passes, which would often result in a goal.

With the best defending record in the Championship and a solid output going forward, it could be hard to understand why Leeds need a new centre-back. The record of Leeds’ current defenders in the Premier League is fairly dire, however.

The current senior centre-back options for Leeds United are: Joe Rodon, Pascal Struijk, Ethan Ampadu, and Max Wöber. Struijk and Wöber were both relegated when Leeds were last in the Premier League, Ampadu has been relegated from the English top-flight with Sheffield United and twice from the Serie A with Venezia and Spezia, and Joe Rodon has made just 15 appearances in the Premier League.

Aside from those four, the only options are academy prospects, such as James Debayo, who Leeds will ideally want to loan out, or playing players out of position, with Ilia Gruev being the only other in-contract player with some experience at centre-back.

To add to previous defensive struggles, Max Wöber is on the verge of an exit. In an interview with Krone, “Leeds has already made it clear to me that they want to sell me.” 

Wöber made just eight appearances for Leeds during their Championship promotion campaign, although lengthy injury stints were partially to blame for this absence.

In addition, there is a reasonable possibility that Pascal Struijk may leave the club. The Dutchman has been a staple of Leeds United’s defence across the last few seasons and has been a key part of this season’s promotion push.

Struijk has become a bit of a fan favourite at Leeds, with his two late goals from the bench against Sunderland potentially being many fans’ highlight from any match this season.

Unfortunately, Leeds will have to make a big sale to improve their Profit and Sustainability Rules standing; players who were either bought for cheap or have been around for a while would be the easiest way to achieve this. Struijk fits both categories and will undoubtedly have interest from other clubs this summer.

Why are Leeds targeting Jaka Bijol?

Jaka Bijol is a Slovenian centre-back who has spent the last three years at Udinese and before then at CSKA Moscow.

Despite having no experience in the Premier League, Bijol has been targeted as having the right profile to fix the defensive vulnerability that Leeds United may have.

Sourcing from FBRef, Jaka Bijol’s greatest strength is likely his aerial dominance, winning 3.31 aerial duals per 90, putting Bijol in the top 7% centre-backs for that stat in Europe’s top five leagues.

Compared to other centre-backs across Europe’s top five leagues per 90 minutes, Bijol also ranks in the top 7% for the most touches in the attacking box and is in the 71st percentile for the most clearances.

Perhaps most notably to Leeds fans, Bijol seems to be an incredibly safe player. His stats are amongst the best in Europe’s top divisions for how often he is dispossessed and how many times he has made errors that lead to goals.

This ability could potentially resolve one of the biggest initial challenges that defenders face in the Premier League; the difficulty of dealing with the fast pace of the league will often result in players struggling with the pressure, leading to dispossession.

This will often lead to a goal, but with Bijol performing sensibly when in possession, there will be a belief that he will be a safe option at the back.

When out of possession, for better or for worse, Bijol can be reasonably reckless with his challenges. Last season, the Slovenian earned 12 yellow cards and one red card in 34 matches and is in the top 10% for most fouls committed with 1.49 fouls per match.

Nevertheless, Leeds United fans have been known to welcome big tackles with players such as Norman Hunter, David Wetherall, and, more recently, Pontus Jansson and Joe Rodon, all being praised and revered for their tenacity and aggression in a tackle.