Leeds gifted golden chance to land summer target on cheap as Farke regret emerges; real reasons for failed move revealed

Leeds United will be presented with a second chance to sign summer target Nadiem Amiri in January after a report claimed the player regretted his decision to reject the Whites and the true reasons behind his snub came to light.

Daniel Farke’s side have quickly adjusted to life back in the second tier following relegation from the Premier League last season and currently sit second in the Championship. The new board at Leeds United, together with football advisor Nick Hammond working alongside Farke, have very quickly assembled a squad that looks capable of bouncing back at the first time of asking.

Their promotion credentials will be put to the acid test on Friday night when they take on Leicester, who currently sit top of the table, having also been demoted alongside Leeds last season.

Farke and Co certainly deserve credit for getting a number of key summer additions right. The likes of Ethan Ampadu, Joel Piroe and Joe Rodon have added a real element of steel and quality to their ranks, while the retention of Crysensio Summerville and Georginio Rutter has also been key so far.

With many players leaving, Leeds were given little time to get the nucleus of that squad in place. And while nine signings did arrive at Elland Road, the club did miss out on the signing of a tenth in the form of Bayer Leverkusen star Amiri.

The five-times capped Germany star flew over to West Yorkshire for extensive talks after Leeds had seen a €6m (£5m) bid accepted by the Bundesliga club.

However, after discussions with his family and a look around the city, Amiri decided against the move.

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Amiri ‘could try to resurrect Leeds move’

It was also suggested at the time that it was actually Leeds who turned down Amiri with the club refusing to bow to his demands to have a clause inserted into his deal allowing him the chance to leave if they failed to earn promotion at the first time of asking.

Either way, the player was sent packing back to Germany and, having covered his air fare to fly over, the player was asked to cover his own flight back to the North-Rhine region.

With just a year left on his deal at Leverkusen, however, Amiri was certainly gambling on his future, having been told he did not figure in the plans of boss Xabi Alonso.

And the iconic former Liverpool star has been relatively true to his word, with Amiri featuring in just five games so far and failing to get on the scoresheet.

Now with his deal having a matter of months to run, Kicker reports that Amiri has now accepted his career at the BayArena is as good as over and he may have made a mistake in rejecting Leeds.

They also report that Amiri is ‘aiming for a move’ in January with just six months left on his deal. And per their information, they state Amiri wants to rid himself of the ‘family influence’ that ‘cost him his move’ in the summer.

Cut price deal on the cards if Farke says yes

To that end, it was declared that Amiri’s wife had decided against the move to West Yorkshire, given she was due to give birth at the time. However, it seems the player has now talked his partner around with a move to Leeds back on his agenda.

Whether Leeds decide to resurrect the prospective deal remains to be seen, with the club well blessed in the attacking department so far this season.

But with claims that Leverkusen will not stand in his way and are now open to an even lesser offer, Leeds could yet give Amiri a second chance to seal the move and boost their own promotion chances in the process.

It’s claimed the decision will ultimately be left to boss Farke, who was reportedly angered by the player’s reluctance to turn his back on a summer move, despite seemingly having agreed personal terms.

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