Soccer Football - Serie A - Juventus v Udinese - Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy - January 7, 2023 Juventus' Weston McKennie in action with Udinese's Mato Jajalo REUTERS/Massimo Pinca
Journalist Mina Rzouki believes that Weston McKennie will cost more than the fee currently being touted for the Leeds United target.
The Lowdown: Midfield still an area of concern
Leeds fans will surely be happy with the business their club has already done this month by bringing in Maximilian Wober and new club-record signing Georginio Rutter, but more could still be needed.
Following the departure of Mateusz Klich to D.C. United, Jesse Marsch is one Premier League-proven player down in the midfield department, which has led to links to players such as McKennie and Azzedine Ounahi.
It’s the latter whose links have been making the most news recently, with claims emerging that the Whites are indeed keen on landing the United States international, which may have come amid Juventus’ off-field problems.
The Latest: Reported price tag too low for McKennie
Reliable reporter Fabrizio Romano had previously claimed that McKennie could be available for £15m, but Italian football expert Rzouki believes that would be far too low for the midfielder.
Speaking live on Sky Sports, she responded to that price tag by saying: “I don’t think it’s just £15m. I think £15m is the most that they can accept without making any capital loss on him, so that’s why that’s probably the very minimum figure, but they are looking to get more and he certainly is worth more than that – I have to stress that.”
The Verdict: McKennie could be a great option for Marsch
Given the experience that McKennie has from his time at Juventus, as well as Schalke in the German Bundesliga, he likely wouldn’t be fazed by coming to the Premier League and may not need as long to adjust compared to someone such as Brenden Aaronson, who’d only played in America and Austria prior to joining Leeds.
Also, the fact that he’s American could naturally help him settle into the club, with Marsch, Tyler Adams and Aaronson all fellow natives, which is only another reason for Victor Orta to target this exciting deal.
While the reported price tag, which ranges between the aforementioned £15m and £18m that is being reported elsewhere in Italy, if Leeds could even land the midfielder for just north of £20m, it would likely be a good value-for-money signing given his pedigree at club and international level.
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