Leeds United backed for fresh Emi Buendia transfer pursuit on one condition | OneFootball

The Argentine will likely be on the Whites' radar once again this summer

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

When looking at which positions Leeds United need to strengthen the most ahead of their return to the Premier League, the goalkeeper and attacking midfielder roles are often mentioned.

Daniel Farke will be looking to add a creative spark to his side. Someone who was linked numerous times over the past season is Emi Buendia, who won the Championship with Daniel Farke twice in 2019 and 2021 whilst at Norwich City, and it wouldn't be a surprise if the Argentine's name is doing the rounds yet again when the transfer window opens on June 16th.

The 28-year-old will likely not be making his loan stay at Bayer Leverkusen a permanent one. The majority of the Villa loanee's appearances in the second half of the season have been from the bench, and the former German invincibles are reportedly looking elsewhere this coming summer.

So, will the various rumours linking Buendia to Elland Road become reality ahead of the 2025/26 campaign? FLW's Leeds United fan pundit, Ger Lynch, has had his say.

Leeds United, Emi Buendia transfer claim made

"Emi Buendia is a link that's very likely to come up this summer due to his links with Daniel Farke," Ger told FLW.

"He had a pretty underwhelming second half of the season in Germany with Leverkusen, and it looks like they're not going to activate the option to buy with Aston Villa, so he's likely to head back there.

"The fact that it didn't go exactly how people expected may bring down the fee and make him more affordable for Leeds to grab him. If the money is right, I can see Leeds getting a deal done."

When fit, Buendia's class is there in abundance. He was a mainstay in the Aston Villa side before a knee ligament injury took him out of the entire 2023/24 season.

"He's a good player," Ger continued. "His recovery from a bad injury is probably the context for his season, but under the right circumstances and with the right manager - and Farke knows him really well - maybe he can be a strong signing."

Emi Buendia would fill a vital role at Leeds United ahead of Premier League campaign

Whilst Ger believes Buendia would be a good signing for Leeds United, he acknowledges that the Argentine isn't the only number 10 who the Whites could pursue this summer.

Leeds are one of the many Premier League sides to be linked with young Manchester City star James McAtee, whilst Sky Sports pundit Lee Hendrie backed them to go in for Gustavo Hamer yet again in his exclusive interview with Football League World.

Regardless of who is brought in to add competition to a position which is taken up almost exclusively by Brenden Aaronson, Ger stresses that they need to be good enough to bring Leeds to that next level in the Premier League.

"The number 10 is a priority for Leeds. Alongside the goalkeeper, it's something they need to strengthen properly this year, so getting the right man is important.

"They'll be shopping around. We've already seen Gus Hamer linked again as well as McAtee and a few others across the continent, too.

"I do like Buendia, though, and I think he'd be a sensible signing, but the money will dictate the whole thing."