Summary Leeds United's lack of goal-scoring options at striker is a concern going into the new season. The club has made contact with Swansea City over Dutch forward Joel Piroe, who has a good track record in the Championship. Piroe's impressive goal involvements in previous seasons could provide Leeds with a solid foundation for their attack.
With Leeds United about to embark on their first season in the Championship for four years, journalist Phil Hay is worried about where the goals will come from and who can be Daniel Farke's Teemu Pukki in white.
Leeds United transfer news
Before the dust had even settled on the Peacocks' relegation from the Premier League last season, players started looking for a way out of the club, and after Sam Allardyce was shown the door, it didn't take long for some of the first team to follow him.
So far, the club have sent four players out on loan, including recent signings Rasmus Kristensen, Brenden Aaronson, and Marc Roca. That number could soon be five as Maximilian Wober looks likely to join Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladbach in the coming days.
That said, the club still, at this point anyway, possess a decent lineup of attacking wide players, such as William Gnonto, Luis Sinisterra, Crysencio Summerville, and Jack Harrison.
However, whilst those players are certainly good enough for the Championship, the options at striker of Patrick Bamford and Gerorginio Rutter could be a problem and don't fill Phil Hay with a great deal of confidence going into the new season.
He explained his feelings on the situation on The Square Ball YouTube channel:
"I do still find myself asking, 'Who is going to be his Teemu Pukki in this team? Who is going to score 20-plus goals? I'm not looking at either Rutter through the middle or Patrick Bamford through the middle and thinking you've got a dead cert there for 20-plus in the season to come.
"I would also say, and I think you're right here, that while they're well served out wide with options, and they definitely are. I'm not sure that there is somebody who is perfectly suited to that central creative role."
Who have Leeds United been linked to?
With the striking situation looking a little worrying, have the club been linked to anyone that could come in and help move the club forward this season?
Well, the good news is that, according to WalesOnline, Leeds have made contact with fellow Championship side Swansea City over their free-scoring Dutch centre-forward Joel Piroe.
The Welsh publication has revealed that the player has refused to sign a new contract with the Swans and that because of this, his valuation could be lower than the £20m it was last summer.
While the 23-year-old isn't currently the Whites 'primary focus', he would be an excellent purchase due to his proficiency in the second tier over the last two seasons.
In his first year in English football, the 6 foot 1 dynamo scored 22 goals and provided six assists in just 40 starts. He followed that up by scoring 19 goals and providing two assists last season in just 43 starts.
So far, the Dutchman has 49 goal involvements in his 7293 minutes of Championship football for the Welsh club, meaning he has produced a goal involvement every 148 minutes, or once every one and a half games or so.
While it might not quite be as prolific as Pukki was for Norwich City in the 2020/21 and 2018/19 seasons, it's still massively impressive and would give the rest of the team an excellent base upon which to build.
If Leeds can get this deal done, it could go a long way in easing Hay's concerns.
