Being a sporting director at a Premier League club is a demanding job and these days every move is scrutinised by the press and supporters. While no sporting director gets every transfer right, Leeds United’s Victor Orta has uncovered some real gems since his arrival at Elland Road.

Raphinha Was A Diamond In The Rough

Few on English shores would have heard of Brazilian winger Raphinha following his move from French outfit Rennes to Leeds back in 2020. A slight but pacey winger with a bag of tricks, the South American was clearly a player with potential. What was most noticeable at the time was the vocal dissent from the Rennes supporters to allow Raphinha to leave for Elland Road for a fee of around £17 million. That should have told Leeds fans all they needed to know and it was soon clear to the Elland Road faithful why Rennes’ supporters were somewhat disgruntled that their Brazilian star was to play for a side just promoted to the Premier League.

Orta and his scouts at Leeds clearly did their work behind the scenes and at the time there was not much talk of other interest in the Premier League. Leeds have not had much luck with Brazilian players in the past and few have ever really shone in the rigours of the Premier League. However, Raphinha took to the pace for the division like a duck to water and soon earned a first call-up to the Brazil senior side. Brazil is the current 9/2 favourite in the World Cup odds to win the World Cup in Qatar this year, and Raphinha looks set to play a big role. With the winger’s efforts catching the eye of some of the biggest clubs in England and abroad, it was always going to be difficult to keep hold of Raphinha for the long term. Barcelona snapped up the Leeds star over the summer with the Whites potentially earning £55 million from the deal. The sale of Raphinha to Barcelona and England international midfielder Kalvin Phillips to Manchester City helped fund Leeds’ summer dealings, which saw some much-needed reinforcements join the West Yorkshire outfit.

Sinisterra A Star In The Making

Orta looks like he might well have pulled off another “real deal” signing in the form of Colombian attacker Luis Sinisterra. The 23-year-old impressed with his efforts at Dutch outfit Feyenoord last season and Leeds splashed £21 million to bring the winger to Elland Road. Similar to Raphinha with pace, tricks and a determination to get on the ball and make things happen, Sinisterra has also hit the ground running in the Premier League.

Opening his goalscoring account in the EFL Cup against Barnsley with a fine strike at Elland Road, Sinisterra bagged his first Premier League goal a week later against Everton. A fine solo effort in an away defeat to Brentford also drew attention to Sinisterra’s talents before September’s international break where he went on to score three goals for Colombia. The fee for Sinisterra now looks to be another bargain for Leeds and again highlights the sterling work done by Orta and his team behind the scenes.

American Duo Looking Sharp

In a busy summer window, Orta also saw the arrival of two USA internationals Brenden Aaronson and Tyler Adams at Elland Road. Both players had worked under Leeds boss Jesse Marsch previously and they have slotted in well to the system under their fellow American coach. Aaronson really announced himself on the big stage to Leeds supporters with the opening goal in a 3-0 win over Chelsea, while Adams has already made himself a reputation for being a nuisance to opposition players in the middle of the park. Adams also has shown he has the technical ability and the vision to help fill the void left by Phillips after his move to City.

With Spanish midfielder Marc Roca also showing touches of class, it has overall been a positive summer of business for Orta and the Leeds hierarchy. More will be expected from Danish defender Rasmus Kristensen as he settles into the Premier League, while there is great excitement about what new arrival Wilfried Gnonto can do after the Italian international’s late arrival in the window.

Orta has been a key figure in the background in Leeds’ rise from the Championship in 2020 to trying to establish themselves back as a Premier League mainstay. From the early evidence of the new season, Orta’s work could well bear fruit for the Whites this term.

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