Leeds United reportedly interested in Peterborough duo

Peterborough United have had a pretty decent season so far this year, as they sit in 6th place and in the League One playoff places, looking to return to the Championship after being relegated at the very end of the 2012-13 season.

And is the case when League One teams start doing well, their star players are usually run the risk of being poached by bigger teams, something that Leeds United fans will be familiar with. Marcus Maddison and Jack Marriott have been stars for Posh this season, and now that the January transfer window is almost here, their young star players are going to be linked with moves up the pyramid.

Leeds United are reportedly interested in the pair. Maddison has scored five goals in all competitions this season to go with 18 assists, and Marriott has scored 21 goals in all appearances for Posh this season. Maddison was linked with a move last year, only for talks to reportedly break down over the transfer fee.

Posh director of football Barry Fry rubbished talk of the pair leaving during the transfer window, claiming that players like Maddison and Marriott weren’t available, at least not without a very substaintial bid telling the Peterborough Telegraph,

Interest in Maddison and Marriott is inevitable. We’re prepared for it, but we don’t have to sell them. Obviously if we get bids of £10 million for them it’s a different story, but we have had nothing like that so far.

We’ve had £2 million bids from Championship clubs, but that isn’t enough for us to even start talking. We don’t want to lose either of them. Maddison has nine goals and 23 assists this season which pretty much makes him irreplaceable.

Obviously, Leeds aren’t going to splash £10 million on a pair of players from League One, but the club has been interested in Maddison before and could look to go back to find some reinforcements for the stretch run, but Maddison plays the same position as Samu Saiz and Pablo Hernandez, meaning he’ll find getting on the pitch a little more difficult than he did in League One.

Marriott has a good goal-scoring record in League One, but again, the leap up to the Championship from League One is often bigger than people realize. Look at the season that Bolton Wanderers are having this year after placing second in League One last year for an indication of how big the jump in quality can often be for teams.

Leeds scouts popped over to Valley Parade to see them on Boxing Day, so maybe there is something to these rumours, and as much as Fry can say that Maddison is “irreplaceable,” money often talks in these deals. Provided a decent fee could be agreed, this deal would make sense for Leeds and Posh.