Leeds United are currently top of the Championship and sit one point ahead of Burnley and Sheffield United in the table after the weekend’s matches.
The Whites could have maintained their three-point lead in the division, however, if they had managed to avoid conceding two goals in the final ten minutes against Hull last time out.
Daniel Farke’s side took a 3-1 lead into the final moments of the match, only to concede in the 81st and 90th minute – with Illan Meslier messing up badly for the first of those goals – as shown in the highlights below.
The January transfer window officially opened for business last week and Leeds could dip into the market to give their side the boost they need to secure automatic promotion to the Premier League in the second half of the season.
They are reportedly in talks to secure a deal to sign Nottingham Forest defender Andrew Omobamidele, who Farke worked with during his time at Norwich City.
However, the Whites are also considering what they could do in the summer to improve the squad if they are able to win promotion back to the top flight.
Leeds United eyeing summer deal for defensive titan
According to journalist Graeme Bailey, Leeds are eyeing up a swoop to bring central defender Ben Godfrey to Elland Road in the summer transfer window.
Ipswich Town, rivals of his former club Norwich, officially confirmed his arrival on loan from Atalanta until the end of the season on Sunday, which means that they will not be able to strike a deal for his services in the current window.
However, the West Yorkshire outfit have not given up on seeing the defensive ace at the club in 2025, as they are now plotting a move for him ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.
Speaking to LeedsUnitedNews, Bailey said: “Leeds love Godfrey and were close to getting him, the player respects them but the chance to play for six months in the Premier League was understandably hard for him to turn down.
“Leeds remain keen on him and am told, if and when promotion is confirmed, Godfrey is one of the players already in their sights.”
It is understandable that Godfrey – who once cost Everton £25m – preferred to go and play for Ipswich in the Premier League in the second half of the season to prove himself in the top flight, having been in the top tier in either Italy or England since the 2020/21 campaign.
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Farke and Leeds now have to hope that the Tractor Boys do not avoid relegation and manage to convince the England international to join them on a permanent basis.
It will be interesting to see what kind of role the German head coach envisions for Godfrey at Elland Road next season, as Joe Rodon and Pascal Struijk have been the first-choice centre-back pairing for him so far this season.
How Leeds United's centre-backs have performed this season
Whilst Ethan Ampadu can cover at centre-back, as he did in the second half of last season, Rodon and Struijk are the only two natural centre-backs who have played regularly during Farke’s tenure – with Max Wober being utilised in a left-back role.
Leeds do not currently have a natural right-sided centre-back to compete with the Wales international, who joined on a permanent deal from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer.
Appearances
26
24
Tackles + interceptions
1.4
2.9
Ball recoveries per game
4.0
4.2
Duel success rate
56%
60%
Error led to shot/goal
2
0
Penalties committed
1
0
As you can see in the table above, Struijk has significantly outperformed the ex-Spurs defender for the Whites in the Championship so far this season.
The Dutchman has been more dominant in his defensive duels and avoided any major errors, whilst Rodon has already made three critical mistakes from a defensive perspective.
This suggests that Godfrey could be brought in to partner Struijk for a potential Premier League season, coming in as a right-footed centre-back to play next to the former Ajax man in the 2025/26 campaign.
Why Ben Godfrey and Pascal Struijk could work
Firstly, the Atalanta titan, currently on loan at Ipswich, is naturally right-footed and could comfortably play next to the left-footed Struijk, despite having played as a left-sided centre-back at times under Farke at Norwich.
This suggests that it would be a stylistic fit with the way that the German ace wants his team to build up play from the back, with both central defenders able to play out confidently.
Godfrey only played one Serie A match for Atalanta in the first half of the season but did start 13 times in the Premier League for Everton last term and averaged 3.1 tackles and interceptions per game – significantly more than Rodon has managed at Championship level.
This shows that the 26-year-old brute already has Premier League experience and has the ability to consistently make defensive interventions at that level, which earned him a move to the Serie A giants last summer.
The England international, who was once described as a “Rolls Royce” by podcaster Ben Winst, would also arrive at Elland Road as a player Farke already loves, as he brought the colossus through the ranks as a youngster at Norwich and won a league title with him in Norfolk.
Shot-creating actions
1.05
Top 15%
Pass accuracy
89.3%
Top 2%
Progressive passes
3.35
Top 21%
Progressive carries
1.17
Top 13%
Touches
62.55
Top 9%
As you can see in the table above, Godfrey was particularly key to what Norwich wanted to do in possession in the 2018/19 Championship title-winning season, ranking highly among his positional peers in the division in a host of progressive possession-based statistics.
The English ace, who Farke claimed has “world-class” potential as a centre-back, also won 63% of his ground duels and did not make a single error that directly led to a goal for the opposition.
These statistics, both from his time in the Championship with German boss and in the Premier League with Everton, suggest that the potential is there for him to come in and offer more quality than Rodon, who has struggled this term.
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Therefore, Godfrey could be a dream for Struijk if they make it to the Premier League, as an experienced and progressive defender who can be a rock at the heart of the defence at Elland Road moving forward – if they can secure a deal to sign him from Atalanta in the summer.
