Leeds linked with move for Oxford United midfielder Cameron Brannagan

Leeds United are interested in signing Oxford United midfielder Cameron Brannagan, according to a report by Mike McGrath in The Telegraph.

It had previously been reported that the former Liverpool midfielder was attracting interest from both Championship and Premier League clubs, following an impressive spell with League One side who currently sit in fourth place.

23 year old Brannagan has scored 12 goals in 93 appearances for Oxford, gaining particularly strong reviews for his performances this season. He also made nine appearances for Liverpool before that, with manager Jurgen Klopp saying “he brings everything you need for a midfield player. He wants to play football, he’s strong, he’s clear, he’s cool.”

Although he didn’t make the grade with this season’s probable champions he was highly thought of, gaining England call-ups at U18 and U20 level, and he seems to have gone from strength to strength at Oxford.

David Ornstein reported in The Athletic that with only 18 months remaining on his contract, Brannagan would only be set to cost around £1m, although I personally would expect it to be slightly higher than that and with a sell-on clause included.

If everyone was fit, it could be argued that Leeds don’t need a central midfielder, but with injuries to Jamie Shackleton and Adam Forshaw Leeds are a bit short. Robbie Gotts made a senior debut against Arsenal and showed he is capable but it certainly would not help for Leeds to have a bit more depth in there. There are areas of more need in the squad but this wouldn’t preclude those moves from happening.

Oxford have today signed former Reading central midfielder Liam Kelly on loan from Feyenoord. This could, at least in part, be in preparation for losing a central midfielder in January.

Would you be happy with the signing of Cameron Brannagan? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter @ThruItAllLUFC.