Sporting director Christoph Freund is relieved to keep Brenden Aaronson at Red Bull Salzburg after rejecting a £20 million bid from Premier League outfit Leeds United, speaking to Salzburg24.
What Marcelo Bielsa wants, Marcelo Bielsa usually gets. Eventually.
The Leeds boss had to wait two-and-a-half years before finally landing Daniel James. And he will have to show the same patience with Aaronson, the transfer window closing on Monday night without a deal in place for the highly-rated USA international.
According to the walking, talking Elland Road oracle that is Phil Hay, Aaronson was ‘very keen’ on a move to West Yorkshire during the January transfer window.
Salzburg stood firm, however, and refused to bow to pressure.
Having reached the Champions League knock-out stages – the first ever Austrian side to achieve such a feat – the taurine-powered outfit were desperate to keep hold of Aaronson ahead of this month’s crunch clash with Bayern Munich.
“It was a very quiet winter with the departures. That’s nice, for once,” sighs Freund.
You can say that again. In 2020, Salzburg sold Takumi Minamino and Erling Haaland. 12 months later, Dominik Szoboszlai crossed the Red Bull divide, swapping Salzburg for sister-club Leipzig.
Will Brenden Aaronson finally join Leeds United in the summer?
“We have two difficult games ahead of Bayern,” Freund adds. “The big goal was to keep the team together.
“Because of this extraordinary autumn (Salzburg are 14 points clear at the top of the Austrian Bundesliga while finishing above Sevilla in their Champions League group) many boys want to continue to be here.
“We have created a very, very good basis in recent years through our successes and, above all, our transfer income. We are not under so much pressure (to sell).”
Aaronson, the so-called US answer to Kai Havertz, was a target for Scottish giants Celtic before joining Salzburg from Philadelphia United. The 21-year-old playmaker, who became the most expensive homegrown player in MLS history, has seven assists and three goals for Salzburg this term.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
