It started off with Spanish rumour website Fichajes blaming the English media.
Fichajes stated on Wednesday that ‘according to reports in England’ (that don’t really seem to exist) Leeds United are keen on signing Alvaro Negredo, and the ‘key’ person in the negotiations is Victor Orta, who took the player to Middlesbrough.
Negredo spent last season on loan at Middlesbrough, but wasn’t able to save the club from relegation to the Championship. There’s been no attempt from Middlesbrough to make the loan permanent, and the arrival of Garry Monk at the club, from Leeds United, has had no impact on that.
Fichajes’ spurious, as usual, claims have then spread around Spain, but there doesn’t seem to be a great effort to take them seriously. It’s not that Leeds United are doubted, it’s more that if the club were going to splash out such a huge amount on wages, then it’s got to be assumed they’d look elsewhere.
SuperDeporte, the local Valencia sport newspaper, have an article on the rumour, and it’s all ‘could’ and ‘may’, they’re clearly not convinced and the write-up of Negredo to Leeds is presented as a big question.
Deporte Valenciano cover the rumour, but say the Besiktas option is much more serious.
Sport don’t dismiss the interest of Leeds United, but report there’s been no proposal so far, and only Besiktas have shown they’d be willing to match the player’s wages, after an average season with Middlesbrough last time around.
Valencia have been looking to offload Negredo pretty much since they signed him permanently, a deal enforced through a clause when Negredo was loaned from Manchester City. There’s been no great attempt to make the move work, and Valencia want the player’s high wages gone.
That led to the Middlesbrough loan, and Valencia hoped a season that wasn’t disastrous for the striker at Boro would lead to other English offers.
Unless there’s truth in the Leeds United claims, which seems very unlikely at this stage, that plan hasn’t worked out.
