Leeds United are currently preparing for a second season in the Championship after they failed to earn promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.
Daniel Farke led his side to a third-placed finish in the second tier but his team then fell short in the play-off final, as they were beaten 1-0 by Southampton at Wembley last month.
The Whites must now regroup and enjoy a successful summer transfer window, which officially opened for business earlier this month, to ensure that they have a squad that is ready to compete for promotion.
Leeds have been linked with an interest in Chelsea defender Alfie Gilchrist, Sheffield United's Daniel Jebbison, and Hungary international Petar Ratkov, among others, in recent weeks.
Farke may have to dip into the market to replace some key players, with Crysencio Summerville reportedly of interest to Brighton & Hove Albion, including his loanees – Connor Roberts, Joe Rodon, and Jaidon Anthony – who have all returned to their parent clubs.
The former Norwich City boss could find a brilliant replacement for Anthony, who was on loan from Bournemouth, by signing one of the club's reported targets.
Leeds eyeing up swoop for Copa America wizard
According to The Athletic, Leeds are one of a number of clubs eyeing up a possible swoop to sign FC Basel winger Liam Millar, who is currently playing in the Copa America for Canada.
The impressive forward spent the 2023/24 campaign on loan with Preston North End in the Championship and a host of teams are looking to bring him back to the division.
Sheffield United, Burnley, and Leeds are three of the sides, per the report, 'heavily' tracking his progress at the Copa America this month, ahead of a potential move for his services.
The Athletic adds that the wizard has one year left to run on his current contract with Basel and has a release clause, although it remains unknown as to the value of it.
This suggests that there could be a chance for the Whites to secure his signature if they have the funds to match his clause, as they would then only have to persuade the player to make the switch to Elland Road.
It states that Millar is keen to return to England, where he came through the academy system at Liverpool, and that could play into Leeds, Burnley, and Sheffield United's hands before the end of the transfer window.
When Liam Millar terrorised Archie Gray
The West Yorkshire side may have decided that they would be interested in signing him when the EFL loanee showcased his devastating talent against them at Deepdale on Boxing Day at the end of last year.
On loan at Preston from Basel, Millar lined up on the left side of their attack and terrorised Leeds starlet Archie Gray, who went on to be crowned the division's Young Player of the Year.
Ryan Lowe's team secured a 2-1 victory on the day and the Canada international played a pivotal role in that success as he assisted the opener with a fantastic cross to Alan Browne, before beating Gray and firing a beautiful shot into the top corner to seal all three points.
Sofascore rating
8.7
5.8
Goals + assists
2
0
Dribbles completed
4/6
0/1
Duels won
9/14
3/13
Tackles won
3
2
As you can see in the table above, Millar dominated the England U21 international with his terrific dribbling skills, which were then backed up by his excellent end product.
Gray lost a whopping ten of his 13 duels and, despite playing at right-back, completed fewer tackles than the winger did for Preston at Deepdale.
Less than a month later, the two teams met at Elland Road and the former Liverpool youngster caused the teenage defender plenty of problems once again.
Leeds won the game 2-1 but Millar created one 'big chance', assisted Will Keane's goal inside two minutes, and won six of his nine duels in Yorkshire. Meanwhile, Gray, who he was up against, lost seven of his 11 duels and failed to create a single chance.
He terroristed the Whites academy graduate over the two matches, with one goal and two assists and the beating of him in duels, and Farke could now make them teammates by signing him as a replacement for Anthony.
Why Leeds should sign Liam Millar
The 24-year-old whiz is a proven Championship performer who could come in and hit the ground running at Elland Road next season as a fantastic option for the manager.
He could be an upgrade on Anthony after the English winger spent the 2023/24 campaign on loan from Bournemouth and failed to make much of an impact on the pitch for Leeds.
Millar, who Preston teammate Alan Browne dubbed "close to unstoppable", produced 13 goals and ten assists in 98 appearances for Basel in Switzerland before making a loan move to Deepdale last term.
Appearances
35
31
Goals
5
1
xA
3.58
1.07
Assists
5
0
Big chances created
7
0
Key passes per game
0.9
0.3
As you can see in the table above, the Canadian wizard has the potential to come in as a big upgrade on Anthony as both a scorer and a creator of goals from a left wing position.
Like the Cherries loanee, he is a right-footed left winger who looks to cut inside onto his favoured foot but their respective statistics from the Championship last season suggest that the Basel man is far more effective at doing so.
Millar's return of five goals also came from an xG of 3.25 and 46.3 touches per match, whilst Summerville racked up 16.41 xG and 57.5 touches per game for Leeds.
This suggests that the Preston loanee could thrive in a Whites team that would allow him to have more touches of the ball and receive more high-quality chances in front of goal, as he has proven his quality as a finisher in the division.
Leeds could sign £14m "unsung hero" to replace Gnonto
The Whites are reportedly keen on a deal to sign the South American star this summer.
ByDan Emery
Taking all of this into account, Millar has the potential to be a superb signing for Leeds as he could be terorrising opposition players instead of Farke's own defenders.
