Good Morning. It's Wednesday 23rd September, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road...
Leeds pair named among best signings of the summer transfer window
Leeds United’s two biggest summer signings are already being treated as among the best of the Premier League window. After five league games, Daniel Farke’s side are unbeaten: two wins, three draws, seven goals scored and three conceded. That defensive record is the joint-tightest in the division, level with Everton, and it has put Leeds fifth going into the international break. The Athletic’s Oliver Kay and Nick Miller have both pointed at the same pair of arrivals. Kay, the former Times chief football correspondent, wrote: “Some of my favourites have already been mentioned, so I’ll go for Jeremy Jacquet at Liverpool and Tarik Muharemovic at Leeds United, two young central defenders who are different in style but have been very similar in adapting to the Premier League so impressively.” He then added a nod to the goalkeeper. “James Trafford has made a very positive start at Leeds, too.”Miller was more direct on the record signing. “Leeds signing Trafford looked like one of the most obvious individual upgrades of the summer, and so it has proved: they have conceded the joint-fewest goals in the division (three, alongside Everton) and, while that is to do with their defence too (another nod here to Muharemovic), he’s been very good.” The fees made both moves look expensive at the time. Muharemovic arrived from Sassuolo for about £34m, a five-year deal for a 6ft 4in, left-footed Bosnia international who had only one full Serie A season behind him. Trafford followed from Manchester City as Leeds’ record signing: a guaranteed £40m, rising towards £45m with add-ons, after City had brought in Gianluigi Donnarumma and left the England keeper looking for a first-choice seat.
Trafford had only a handful of Premier League starts for City. In truth, he already had the profile of a regular at most top-flight clubs: a Championship Golden Glove winner with Burnley, a World Cup squad member, and a goalkeeper who had just started both domestic cup finals for City. He was unlucky, more than unready. Five games is still a small sample. But the early picture is clean. Trafford has started every league match, kept two clean sheets and conceded three. Muharemovic has started all five and already looks like the left-sided centre-back Leeds needed after selling Pascal Struijk. The Athletic’s praise is not hype for its own sake. It is a first verdict on two signings who were supposed to raise the floor, and, so far, have.
Gnonto loan not going to plan
Wilfried Gnonto's hopes of securing a permanent deal at Fiorentina already look shaky, just three weeks into his season-long loan. The Viola have an option to buy the Italian U21 international for approximately £18m — a lot of money for a mid-table Serie A club that has already spent more than €150m this summer and still chose to take Gnonto on loan rather than buy him outright. If Fiorentina had been certain, they'd have signed him permanently.Gnonto has had a mixed start. He has four appearances in all competitions, one goal and about 165–175 minutes. The goal came from his only start so far, a 3-0 Coppa Italia win over Pisa. In Serie A he has been used off the bench against Torino, Venezia and Napoli. Fiorentina have played seven games in all competitions this season, and the club also changed managers quickly: after a poor start that included three straight league defeats, Fabio Grosso was sacked.
Paolo Vanoli has since taken four points from two league games and won in the cup. Under Vanoli, Gnonto has started only that rotated Coppa Italia tie. With results settling and the winger on the bench, it is getting harder to see Fiorentina justifying an £18m outlay at the end of the season.
Leeds should not treat this as an abstract worry. Last January they sent Jack Harrison to the same club on loan with a much cheaper option to buy, around €7m. Harrison played regularly, scored once and added a handful of assists — Fiorentina still walked away. If they wouldn't spend £6m on Harrison after half a season of starts, they will need a lot more from Gnonto before they spend three times that.
A slow start was always likely after last season at Elland Road, when Gnonto was largely a substitute. He has said himself that 2025/26 "was not very positive" and that he needed a change — but he hasn't been missed.
If Fiorentina decide they can live without him, the buy option dies and Gnonto returns to Elland Road next summer in the same situation Largie Ramazani found himself in this summer: a talented, tricky winger who has lost his way. That will do little to help Leeds' financial situation. It wasn't long ago that the 22-year-old was looked upon as a £30m player; if his loan deal turns out to be unsuccessful, his profile drops even further, and so will his selling price.
Egan-Riley thrown straight into action as U21's beat Tykes
Leeds United have completed the signing of 19yo academy centre-back Roman Egan-Riley after officially leaving Tottenham Hotspur. The Manchester-born defender was thrown into action straight away for Scott Gardner’s U21's as they opened their EFL Trophy Group G campaign with a 4-3 win at League One Barnsley. Callum Mills scored a hat-trick, with Josh McDonald adding the other goal before Barnsley staged a late rally, netting three times in the final ten minutes.Egan-Riley, born 14 December 2006, began at Manchester City, joined Spurs in 2023 and signed his first professional contract there in January 2024. He left Tottenham for Burnley in February 2026 on a deal to the end of that season, then moved to Leeds for 2026/27. He is the younger brother of Marseille centre-back CJ Egan-Riley, who was a regular in the Burnley side that finished second behind Leeds in the Championship promotion race.
Leeds U21 recruitment had been quieter after Victor Orta’s departure. This summer the 49ers-backed academy has again brought in young players to strengthen Gardner’s group. An unnamed trialist has also featured in defence in Leeds’ early U21 fixtures. Egan-Riley’s arrival is a modest but useful addition: a tall, physically imposing centre-back with top-academy experience and a family link to a player who already knows what it takes to win.
