{"id":717152,"date":"2026-01-24T08:19:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-24T08:19:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/717152\/"},"modified":"2026-01-24T08:19:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T08:19:10","slug":"6-potential-sales-that-could-fund-strand-larsen-move","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/717152\/","title":{"rendered":"6 potential sales that could fund Strand Larsen move"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wolves have rejected Leeds United<\/a>\u2018s bid for star striker Jorgen Strand Larsen, according to reports.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s unknown how much Leeds bid for the 25-year-old Norway international, who scored 14 goals in his debut Premier League season for Wolves.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s believed that he\u2019s valued at \u00a340million by Wolves, a fee that would smash Leeds\u2019 transfer record \u2013 and seriously test their limitations within the Premier League\u2019s PSR rules. But could they bring money in to help fund such an ambitious move?<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve taken a look at six players that Leeds could sell to balance the books if they\u2019re to land Strand Larsen\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n

Joel Piroe<\/strong><\/p>\n

The obvious one.<\/p>\n

Piroe finished as the Championship\u2019s top scorer when Leeds went up with 100 points last season.<\/p>\n

Of course, that proven track record makes him a hugely enticing prospect for any second-tier clubs who are looking for a boost in their promotion charge. And we\u2019re seeing the likes of Wrexham splash some eye-watering fees on players.<\/p>\n

Noises coming out of Piroe\u2019s camp suggest that he\u2019s willing to stay and fight for his place before assessing his options in the summer. But that could change if he gets further pushed down the pecking order, having only started two Premier League games since Leeds signed two centre-forwards in the summer.<\/p>\n

The links back to PSV won\u2019t go away, either. Playing in the Champions League for his boyhood club, who are Eredivisie champions and all but guaranteed to retain their title, must be tempting.<\/p>\n

Ao Tanaka<\/strong><\/p>\n

This one would sting, but there\u2019d be a logic to it.<\/p>\n

The Japan international is a fan favourite and was among Leeds\u2019 standout players in last season\u2019s promotion charge. He was also superb in the opening weekend victory over Everton<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But he seems strangely untrusted at this level by Daniel Farke, particularly since the manager really started leaning into the Big B*stards FC approach with three at the back and two up top.<\/p>\n

The more functional Ilia Gruev has been preferred of late. There\u2019s a question of exactly where Tanaka fits in with Ethan Ampadu and Anton Stach guaranteed starts, and summer signing Sean Longstaff returning from injury.<\/p>\n

Leeds have adapted to an effective gameplan that doesn\u2019t seem to have a place for the midfielder. It\u2019s a World Cup year and Tanaka is too good a footballer to sit on the bench.<\/p>\n

If a serious offer arrives, it would be best for all parties for Leeds to at least consider it. That was unthinkable six months ago, but football moves fast.<\/p>\n

Wilfried Gnonto<\/strong><\/p>\n

The youngest player in Leeds\u2019 squad at the age off 22, Gnonto is among Leeds\u2019 most lucrative assets.<\/p>\n

We didn\u2019t get into football to learn about accounting practices, amortisation and \u2018pure profit\u2019 but that\u2019s where we are. Football in 2026, eh?<\/p>\n

The Italian still has plenty of potential, and remains a tricky squad option that offers Farke something a bit different from the bench. But he\u2019s made just four Premier League starts and played fewer than 500 minutes.<\/p>\n

When Leeds could theoretically cash in and make a healthy profit on a highly-rated young player who has represented Italy, is it worth their while to keep him around for the odd 10-minute cameo here and there?<\/p>\n

Illan Meslier<\/strong><\/p>\n

Where\u2019s that Reece Shearsmith clip?<\/a><\/p>\n

We\u2019re sure it\u2019s occurred to the Leeds board to sell the club\u2019s former No.1, who lost his place between the sticks after a series of high-profile blunders last season.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t so long ago that Meslier was being talked up as Hugo Lloris\u2019 successor for France, but he\u2019s played zero minutes this season and only made the bench on a handful of occasions.<\/p>\n

His stock has plummeted since a very promising first season in the Premier League, under Marcelo Bielsa, five years ago.<\/p>\n

Meslier appears happy enough to wait this one out and assess his options as a free agent in the summer. As is his right. But it would certainly help Leeds out if they could offload their third-choice \u2018keeper, even for a minor fee, this January.<\/p>\n

Mateo Joseph<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m one of those people who say never say never,\u201d Joseph told The Athletic back in August.<\/p>\n

\u201cFootball takes many twists and turns. If circumstances change, anything is possible. But right now, my mind isn\u2019t there, it\u2019s here (in Mallorca).\u201d<\/p>\n

While he hasn\u2019t closed the door on a return to his parent club, we can\u2019t see it happening. Particularly if they land Strand Larsen\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s possible that Leeds could recall the Spain Under-21 international, in order to sell him, depending on whether there\u2019s a clause in his deal with the La Liga club.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s unlikely, especially given he\u2019s only scored two goals this season and the interest doesn\u2019t appear to be there.<\/p>\n

The best-case scenario is that Joseph finds his feet and puts himself in the shop window by banging in the goals for the remainder of the campaign.<\/p>\n

Leeds could pull an Archie Gray and get him sold early in the summer, so it factors into this accounting period.<\/p>\n

Largie Ramazani<\/strong><\/p>\n

Another La Liga loanee, Ramazani has struggled for playing opportunities out at Carlos Corberan\u2019s Valencia this season.<\/p>\n

A January recall has been mooted and appears increasingly likely \u2013 if only to send him elsewhere for the remainder of the campaign.<\/p>\n

Jack Harrison\u2019s loan to Fiorentina potentially gives the Belgian a spot to fight for, but Farke barely trusted Ramazani as a winger, let alone a wingback. We can\u2019t see where he fits into this 5-3-2 system.<\/p>\n

Whatever happens, we don\u2019t see Ramazani remaining on Leeds\u2019 books next season. A permanent January move and a fresh start might be for the best, but finding a buyer would be easier said than done.<\/p>\n

READ NEXT: The amazing Premier League table since Leeds changed to a 3-5-2 formation<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every Scandinavian to have played for Leeds United?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Wolves have rejected Leeds United\u2018s bid for star striker Jorgen Strand Larsen, according to reports. It\u2019s unknown how…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":717153,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8814],"tags":[748,393,4884,2998,1860,2922,122477,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-717152","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leeds","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-latest","12":"tag-leeds","13":"tag-leeds-united","14":"tag-popular","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115949100393437228","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/717152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=717152"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/717152\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/717153"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=717152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=717152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=717152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}