Since the summer transfer market officially opened for business last month, Leeds United boss Daniel Farke has added four players to his roster.
Ahead of the 2024–25 Championship campaign, Joe Rodon, Alex Cairns, Joe Rothwell, and Jayden Bogle have all been added to bolster the group.
The German head coach has already seen two of his loanees return to their parent clubs: Glen Kamara to Rennes and Archie Gray to Tottenham Hotspur.
Nonetheless, Farke and Leeds might be able to find an excellent Anthony substitute this summer by swooping to capture one of the team’s purported transfer targets.
Leeds’s curiosity in the Premier League forward
The West Yorkshire team is reportedly one of several teams interested in Crystal Palace forward Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, according to a recent article from London News Online.
The outlet claimed that the Whites are looking to sign the 21-year-old wizard on loan for the 2024/25 campaign, but they are facing stiff competition for his signature.
It said that while Southampton, a Premier League team, had their £7 million deal turned down by the Eagles, eighteen Championship teams were interested in the former Charlton Athletic loanee.
Leeds needs to move quickly to secure the quality Premier League young player, as he might be a significant improvement over Anthony, who had a difficult season at Elland Road.
Reasons Leeds ought to sign Jesurun Sakyi Rak
Rak-Sayki, like the Bournemouth player, is a flexible forward who can be used through the middle or on the flank, so he might be a useful addition to the team to provide backup in a variety of situations.
In order to give competition on the wings during the 2023–24 season, Anthony was brought in on loan; nevertheless, he was unable to deliver quality play at the top of the pitch.
For Farke’s team, the 24-year-old flanker made 31 appearances in the Championship. The English failure did not create any “big chances” for his teammates throughout that period and only managed one goal and zero assists.
Rak-Sakyi is an inexperienced player at the Championship level, but he has the ability to enter the game and have a bigger influence for the Whites in the final third.
Though he only made six Premier League appearances last season, the young genius—who Roy Hodgson called “remarkable”—has proven his abilities at the U21 and League One levels in previous seasons.
Rak-Sakyi, who was on loan at Charlton for the 2022–23 season, was a consistent quality finisher and goal creator in the final third, as the table above shows.
Since the start of the 2021/22 season, the £7.5k-per-week star has also scored 22 goals and provided seven assists in 29 Premier League 2 games for Palace’s U21 team.
He has proven his attacking quality in the third tier of English football and at youth level, and now it is time for him to make his mark in the Championship.
Leeds must swoop to sign the talented youngster to come in as a big upgrade on Anthony, due to his potential to offer far more as a scorer and a creator from a wide position.
