Could investment hand Leeds chance to afford £6.5m Jack Marriott deal?

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Leeds United are reportedly interested in Jack Marriott, but may have to pay £6.5 million to get a deal done.

According to a report from The Sun, Leeds are amongst the Championship sides interested in signing Jack Marriott from Peterborough United this summer, but the Whites would have to pay £6.5 million to make a move happen.

Based on his form this past season, it appears to be a no-brainer for any Championship club with plenty of money to spend to meet Posh’s demands. Marriott scored 33 goals in all competitions, including eight in his last 10 appearances of the campaign.

While Leeds’ books appear to have been in good order in Andrea Radrizzani’s time as Whites owner, he has so far been reluctant to spend eye-watering amounts on individual signings. Certainly, the strategy during Victor Orta’s first year at the club appeared to be based on trying to uncover gems for low prices.

As transfermarkt shows, meeting Marriott’s asking price would make the striker Leeds’ most expensive signing since their relegation from the Premier League by quite some way. Adam Forshaw is the only player that Leeds have spent more than £4 million on since 2004.

But after such a disappointing final few months of the season, it appears that Radrizzani is prepared to change tactic in the market slightly – and the club have made an announcement that suggests he has secured the funds that may perhaps increase the likelihood of a potential spending spree.

Leeds have announced that NFL franchise San Francisco 49ers have purchased a minority stake in the club, with the Yorkshire Evening Post reporting that they have paid around £10 million as part of the deal, and at least some of that money will boost Heckingbottom’s war chest for the summer.

With that in mind, it certainly appears a lot more realistic to imagine that Leeds will not shy away from Marriott’s asking price should they decide that he is the kind of striker who could fire the club back to the Premier League.

In previous years, Leeds fans may have given up on believing that the Whites could be in the hunt for a target if they heard that their asking price was anything above £5 million. But after their transfer policy failed on several fronts last season and the club secured the investment that will reportedly hand their funds for this summer a major boost, perhaps the supporters can start to believe that Leeds are now in an era where they may be able to compete with their rivals for big-money targets on a much more regular basis.