‘Leeds scouts closely watching Vladyslav Vanat’ as release clause revealed
Vladyslav Vanat will be available for roughly £16million this summer as Leeds United prepare to bolster their frontline, sources have told Football Insider.
Speaking on the latest edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, senior correspondent Pete O’Rourke revealed what his sources have told him about Vanat’s progress with Dynamo Kyiv this season.
Vanat’s 21 goals and nine assists in all competitons for Dynamo have drawn Everton, Fulham and Leeds‘ attention ahead of the summer, despite doubts over if he can translate that form to the Premier League.
Now, sources have told Football Insider that Vanat’s release clause in Kyiv stands at just £16m, and that has alerted Daniel Farke to the possibility of signing the 23-year-old for a relatively cheap transfer fee.
Leeds are under no illusions that they need to improve up front if they’re to survive in the Premier League next term, and see Vanat as a player who can do just that despite his lack of experience outside Ukraine.
Football Insider sources have said that Leeds’ scouts have had “regular checks” on Vanat this season ahead of a potential move, and they’ll recommend to Farke whether he can perform at the highest level.
Leeds lead the way for £16m Vanat ‘gamble’.
Football Insider revealed on Sunday (25 May) that Leeds have their doubts over a potential move for Newcastle striker Callum Wilson, and could turn attention to Vanat as an alternative up front this summer.
Speaking on the new Inside Track, O’Rourke said that while a move for Vanat would undoubtedly be a “gamble”, Leeds are hopeful that he’d be able to bring his Dynamo Kyiv form with him to West Yorkshire.
“It would be a gamble… [Vanat] has a good goalscoring record for Dinamo Kyiv in Ukraine”, he told Football Insider.
“He’s got 21 goals and nine assists this season for Kyiv, and obviously that form has brought him onto the radar of a number of other European clubs.
“There’s talk that Everton and Fulham have shown a bit of an interest…the player himself would be interested in moving to one of those top European leagues.
“He does have a release clause of around £16million, so relatively cheap in today’s market as well.
“[If] they are to have any chance of staying up, they’re going to have to bring in some Premier League proven players, just to add experience and a bit of guile to that Leeds side next season.
“As good as his goalscoring record is, [Vanat] is still only 23 and has never played outside Ukraine.
“It’ll be a huge gamble, but I’m sure that Leeds’ scouts and all those other teams will have been making regular checks on him, and they’ll recommend if they think he could do it in the Premier League or not.”
Vanat transfer a no-brainer for newly-promoted Leeds
Although Leeds’ links with Wilson and other aging strikers like Jamie Vardy make clear that they’ll value Premier League experience very highly this summer, the element of the unknown could prove effective.
With Patrick Bamford likely to leave Leeds this summer, Joel Piroe unable to carry the load alone, Mateo Joseph and Harry Gray both still raw, a striker who can hit the ground running is absolutely paramount.
Wilson and Vardy’s careers are both winding down and neither player is likely to be the long-term answer for Leeds up front, and despite the patchy history of players moving from the Ukrainian Premier League to England, Vanat could be one who bucks the trend.