Leeds United will be hoping that their attacking firepower can help carry them to promotion this season. The Whites have been in good form, and currently sit top of the table in the Championship, but it is not going to be a straightforward title race. Although they have a game in hand, just one point separates them and fourth place Sunderland.
Joel Piroe has been fantastic for Daniel Farke’s side this season and has ten goals and five assists in all competitions. Brendan Aaronson and Daniel James have seven goals apiece across all competitions, with Welshman James grabbing four assists and USA international Aaronson notching up two.
Incredibly, to add to the quality in forward areas, Leeds are plotting a move for another exciting striker.
Leeds target new striker
The player in question here is Southampton centre-forward Cameron Archer. The Saints attacker has only been at the club for a few months, after moving from Aston Villa in the summer, but could be on the move again.
Transfer Focus
According to an exclusive report from Football League World, the Championship leaders are ‘planning to table a new bid’ for Archer in the coming hours, after an initial bid was rejected by the Saints.
It remains unclear what type of bid the Whites will place, although the side bottom of the Premier League initially rejected a loan bid.
There is no clarity on whether Leeds will aim to sign Archer permanently or make a move on loan, just that they are ‘planning on making a new offer for the forward’ in an attempt to lure him to Elland Road.
Why Archer could be a good signing
It has certainly been a tough season for Archer in the Premier League. He has played 21 games in total for Southampton, scoring just two goals, although gave his side the lead in a game away to Arsenal. The Saints went on to lose 3-1, however.
If there is one thing that Archer could bring to the Leeds squad, it is even more goalscoring pedigree in the English second tier. He has had previous loan spells in the Championship with Preston North End and, more recently, Middlesbrough.
In that time, the former England under-21 international found the back of the net 18 times and registered seven assists in 40 appearances for both clubs. That included two goals and two assists in the same game for Boro, a 5-1 thrashing of Norwich City.
Should the Whites sign Archer, it could be a repeat of the deal to bring Chris Wood to Elland Road. He signed from Leicester City for an undisclosed fee back in July 2015, as a 23-year-old, just like Archer is.
Wood is loving life in the Premier League this season for Nottingham Forest, but really became a deadly striker as a Leeds player.
He played 88 times for the Yorkshire side, scoring 44 goals and grabbing nine assists in 88 appearances, having previously endured numerous stints across the EFL, much like Archer.
There are certainly similarities between the two players, more so than the fact they would be the same age joining Leeds if Archer was to make the move. In fact, statistical comparisons can be drawn via FBref, with the pair deemed to be similar players in the Premier League.
This season per game in the top-flight, there are clear similarities between the players, despite the fact Wood has 14 goals to Archer’s two. For example, the Saints star is averaging an expected goals tally of 0.38xG and 1.12 shot-creating actions, compared to Wood’s 0.4xG and 1.33 shot-creating actions.
Stat (per 90)
Archer
Wood
Expected goals
0.38xG
0.4xG
Non-penalty expected goals
0.31xG
0.32xG
Shots
1.9
1.91
Goals per shot on target
0.33
0.57
Shot-creating actions
1.12
1.33
Archer, a “ball-striking monster”, as football analyst Ben Mattinson described him, could be the difference maker for Leeds. He is proven in the Championship and could try and replicate what Wood did in that famous white shirt all those years ago.
Be it a loan or a permanent deal, this late move could be exactly what the Whites need to help in their quest for promotion.
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