It appears that Leeds United are getting ever closer to getting yet another signing through the door at Elland Road.
That man is Georginio Rutter, currently playing for Hoffenheim, for whom the Whites are currently ‘close to concluding an agreement’, according to L’Equipe in France.
The offer, said to be ‘of around €30m’, is said to have come at an ‘unexpected timing’ for both the Bundesliga side and the player, who had not planned for a mid-season exit.
While the public facade of Hoffenheim is that of a strong stance, it’s said that, in private, such an advance from Leeds for the forward ‘makes you think’.
The German club left him out of a friendly against Servette, stating that he was affected by the situation, but L’Equipe claim that, according to their information, he is not ‘unduly disturbed’ and has trained normally.
In fact, he is ‘seduced’ by the prospect of moving to the Premier League, and is currently ‘awaiting the outcome’ of the negotiations between the two sides.
Leeds see him as a ‘priority’, shown by how much they are willing to pay for him, and his performances have ‘not escaped’ the eye of the Elland Road side.
Jesse Marsch and co. appreciate ‘his skill with both feet, his appetite for one on one dribbling down the sides and his ability to launch himself towards goal with pace’.
Leeds are offering Rutter ‘an important role’ with a promise of ‘letting him go, perhaps, to a more upscale club in the country’, much like they did with Kalvin Phillips.
L’Equipe then go as far as saying that, the way talks are currently going, ‘the probability of seeing Rutter on January 21st against Union Berlin for the return of the Bundesliga is diminishing by the hour’.
