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Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing Portuguese forward Ivan Cavaleiro from Wolverhampton. The winger is reportedly on the club’s radar as the club looks for new players in the January transfer window to boost the quality in the side and replace Samu Saiz, who left for Getafe.
#Leeds looking to do deal for #Wolves forward Ivan Cavaleiro. More on @TheSunFootball
— Mike McGrath (@mcgrathmike) January 25, 2019
I know Cavaleiro was looked at before Christmas but at the time Wolves said he wasn’t available. Leeds still working on James but they’ll need fallbacks if it doesn’t happen.
— Phil Hay (@PhilHayYEP) January 25, 2019
Phil Hay of the Yorkshire Evening Post confirmed that Leeds are interested in the former Portugal international forward as an alternative to signing James from Swansea City, as the potential transfer seems to be dragging on.
Cavaleiro was one of the key players for Wolves last season as the club ran riot over the Championship on their way to automatic promotion. He scored nine goals and registered 12 assists last season in 42 matches played in the Championship, although this season he’s only been able to get 16 total appearances, scoring three goals.
After joining Wolves in August of 2016 from Monaco, he scored five goals and had five assists in the 2016-17 season. He also previously played for Deportivo La Coruña in La Liga, scoring three goals in 34 appearances in the 2014-15 season. He started his career at Portuguese giant Benfica, although he only made 20 appearances in the senior team after appearing 56 times for Benfica B.
This rumour has all the hallmarks of trying to get Swansea to get a deal for James past the post, as while Swansea will probably want to hang onto the young winger, they do need the cash to keep the club running, despite what Swansea manager Graham Potter seems to think.
Perhaps the prodding will work and a deal for James will get done before the end of the window, but if it doesn’t, landing someone with the quality of Cavaleiro wouldn’t necessarily be the worst signing. At the very least, Cavaleiro is proven to be a great player at the Championship level, although it appears he’s been squeezed out at Wolves now that they are in Premier League.
Either way, Leeds are serious about getting a new winger and that should help get Leeds to the promised land.