---
title: "Leeds: Whites have competition for James McAtee"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/james-mcatee-leeds-southampton-transfer-interest-orta-phillips/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "David Comerford"
section: "Leeds United News"
published: "2022-06-20T18:35:53Z"
modified: "2022-06-20T18:35:53Z"
---

# Leeds: Whites have competition for James McAtee

**[Leeds United](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/leeds-united-news/) have a [Premier League](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/premier-league-news/) rival in their pursuit of Manchester City starlet James McAtee, according to The Daily Mail (via [MOT Leeds News](https://motleedsnews.com/news/leeds-united-face-competition-from-southampton-to-sign-james-mcatee/)).**

### The lowdown

The youngster has [emerged as a potential bargaining chip](https://motleedsnews.com/news/leeds-united-face-competition-from-southampton-to-sign-james-mcatee/) in negotiations between City and Leeds over the signing of Kalvin Phillips.

The 19-year-old [predominantly played](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/james-mcatee/leistungsdaten/spieler/583199) as an attacking midfielder last season but can also operate from a deeper role.

Last summer, Leeds signed another midfield starlet from an English club in the Champions League, snapping up Lewis Bate from Chelsea for [£1.5m](https://www.bbc.com/sport/articles/c41yvwk8w45o).

### The latest

On Sunday, the print edition of The Daily Mail reported (via [MOT Leeds News](https://motleedsnews.com/news/leeds-united-face-competition-from-southampton-to-sign-james-mcatee/)) that Leeds are ‘keen’ on McAtee, along with City’s fellow ‘rising star’ Romeo Lavia.

However, the former is also ‘wanted by Southampton’, potentially throwing a spanner in the works for Victor Orta and the Whites if the Premier League champions agree to let him go.

[![Latest Leeds United news!](https://cdn.footballtransfertavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/cropped-2022-03-10T184055Z_1834933207_UP1EI3A1FW561_RTRMADP_3_SOCCER-ENGLAND-LEE-AVA-REPORT-1-scaled-1.jpg)](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-news-45/)

### The verdict

McAtee’s potential is abundantly clear. He has already made [six appearances](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/james-mcatee/leistungsdatendetails/spieler/583199/verein/281) for City’s first team, which is no mean feat considering that, according to [Transfermarkt](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/spieler-statistik/wertvollstemannschaften/marktwertetop), their squad is the most valuable in the world.

He has also stood out at under-23 level, [scoring 27 goals and providing 19 assists](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/james-mcatee/leistungsdaten/spieler/583199) in 52 outings and winning the [Premier League 2 Player of the Year](https://www.mancity.com/news/eds-academy/james-mcatee-named-pl2-player-of-the-season-63788907#:~:text=James%20McAtee%20has%20been%20named,the%20division's%20joint%2Dtop%20scorer.) award. That has unsurprisingly led to international recognition, with McAtee earning [five caps](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/james-mcatee/nationalmannschaft/spieler/583199) so far for England’s under-20s.

\[freshpress-quiz id=”398317″\]

Goal.com’s Manchester City correspondent Jonathan Smith has [hailed](https://twitter.com/jonnysmiffy/status/1488935322872426500) the 19-year-old as a ‘massive talent’ with ‘huge potential’, and the good news for Leeds is that City’s interest in Phillips could give them a crucial edge over Southampton in this particular transfer pursuit.

**In other news, [Leeds have learned how much they’ll have to pay for this defensive target](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/leeds-united-news/leeds-whites-learn-price-tag-for-nathan-collins/)**