Leeds United have opened Julian Brandt Liverpool transfer interest and are exploring free-agent moves for both Julian Brandt and Harry Wilson before their contracts expire at the end of this month. The appeal is straightforward: two established attackers, no transfer fee, and a market that should move fast.
Brandt is 30 and Wilson is 29. Brandt has 48 caps for Germany, 383 Bundesliga appearances and 82 Champions League appearances, while Wilson posted 10 goals and seven assists in the Premier League last season.
Brandt Fits Daniel Farke
Brandt would slot into the role Daniel Farke uses behind a striker in a 3-4-2-1 shape. Last term, he played predominantly as an inside No 10 off the right or left with Borussia Dortmund, and he has gone beyond 2,000 league minutes in eight of his last 10 campaigns.
He has also reached double figures for goals and assists combined in 10 of his previous 11 seasons in Germany's top flight. That is the kind of production Leeds are chasing as they try to strengthen the attacking group without spending a fee.
Harry Wilson To Elland Road
Wilson is a familiar name for Leeds United. He was primed for a switch to Elland Road on the final day of last summer's transfer window, but the move collapsed at the 11th hour.
Leeds pursued him then as the left-footed playmaker they wanted to drift in from the right flank. His 10 goals and seven assists last season put him among the Premier League's more productive creators, with only seven players involved in more goals.
Free-Agent Competition
The complication is the market itself. Leeds sources expect fierce competition for players of Brandt's and Wilson's caliber because neither would require a transfer fee, and that widens the field immediately.
For Leeds, the next step is simple but unforgiving: move before the contracts run out, or risk watching two targets become available to everyone else at the same time.
