‘Very, very good deal’ – Leeds United were prepared to pay ‘50% more’ for January signing, director worked some magic

Following his performances at the World Cup, Azzedine Ounahi quickly became a target for a lot of clubs, including Leeds United.

Claims the Elland Road side had made an offer to Angers for the midfielder started to circulate, but the player was more interested in a move to Napoli at the time, therefore putting everything on hold.

In the end, neither the Serie A side nor Leeds managed to get the player, as Marseille came in late, and swooped right in to take him on a permanent transfer of €8m up front with €2m in bonuses (with a percentage of a next sale).

Still, it was a far lower fee than what the Premier League side were prepared to pay if Le10 Sport in France are to be believed.

They explain that Angers received offers ‘far superior’, with Leeds name as one who ‘offered more than €15m’ as a fixed amount, which is at least ‘50% more’ than the one eventually accepted, .

Therefore, Marseille, getting the player for €10m, pulled off a ‘very, very good deal’, with Pablo Longoria working his magic to convince everyone this was the right move for Ounahi.

Leeds, down their end, signed Weston McKennie from Juvenuts, only to sack Jesse Marsch less than a week later after a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest.