Leeds have this morning announced that a fee has been agreed with J-League side Gamba Osaka for midfielder Yosuke Ideguchi. The deal is no secret but it still has to get over the line, and the club have now agreed the fee.
Ideguchi (21) will travel to England next week ahead of his move and seems set to sign a long-term deal with the club. The J-League has now finished in Japan and Ideguchi will need to be playing regular football ahead of the World Cup in Russia this summer. The young defensive midfielder is expected to be a key figure for the national side, his goal secured them a route to the finals against Australia which really put him on the map.
Although Leeds haven’t made any secret of their attempts to sign Ideguchi the deal was probably quite complicated due to signing him from the Asian market. He will be the first Japanese player to play for Leeds United, although the fans will have to wait to see him in action. Due to work permit issues Ideguchi will “most probably be loaned to Cultural Leonesa” as the statement said this morning.
It’s early in the morning for transfer news, but a good start to the day. Ideguchi will become the second signing if he passes his medical after Aapo Halme signed yesterday. We still need players through the door to help the first-team.
