Leeds ready to pay 'huge fee' for Ousmane Diomande signing, 49ers Enterprises to back Daniel Farke
Leeds United are prepared to spend big on a deal to sign Ousmane Diomande in an effort to back Daniel Farke's ambitious plans.
This comes after the boss demanded the board show ambition and back him in the summer transfer window amid hints he could otherwise walk away from his position.
As a result, Leeds are eyeing ambtious moves in the transfer market, and have identified Diomande as a leading target to improve their defence.
Former Man United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider that Leeds may not be put off by Diomande's extremely high asking price as they plan to spend big.
The Sporting CP defender has a £69million release clause in his contract with the Portuguese club, while Crystal Palace were quoted £80m before he signed that deal last summer.
As a result, they are unlikely to let him leave easily, and Leeds will have to break their transfer record if they want to get a deal over the line.
Could Leeds break their transfer record for Ousmane Diomande?
Football Insider revealed on 16 June that Leeds are ready to make a statement signing by breaking their transfer record to sign Diomande from Sporting CP.
The Whites are keen to show their ambitions in a statement to their Premier League rivals and also to prove to Farke that they are prepared to back him.
Their current record transfer fee remains the £34m spent to sign Georginio Rutter from Hoffeinheim, but they may now be prepared to smash that glass cieling.
"It looks like Leeds are going to spend big this summer," Brown told Football Insider.
"They want to show the manager that they can be ambitous and back him with big signings, especially after he essentially told them he would walk away if they didn't.
"So paying a huge fee like that for Diomande is something I expect they will be prepared to do this summer, because they want to show that they are willing to sign these top players.
"Leeds did really well last season to stay in the Premier League, but they want to build on that, and sometimes that means you have to spend big money.
"If they go and break their transfer record on bringing in a player like Diomande, that's a real statement of intent and shows the manager they are behind him."
Could Daniel Farke walk away from the Leeds job?
Speculation about Farke's long-term future at Elland Road emerged following an outspoken press conference at the end of the season where he insisted the club must show ambition.
He aims to build on their strong 14th-place finish heading into next season, and hinted that if the club fail to match his ambitions, he could walk away.
Brown warned Football Insider on 1 June that Farke could quit his position as Leeds manager if he does not feel the board are prepared to support his plans.
The boss is in a strong positon to make demands of the board after achieving all the goals they set for him ahead of their return to Premier League football.
Now, he plans to go one step further, and Leeds must show they are prepared to follow him in his ambitions to improve the club's standing.