Marcelo Bielsa’s Championship title-chasers Leeds United reportedly wanted Braga centre-back Bruno Viana last year – could he finally move to Elland Road?
There was almost as many scouts as there were fans in the picturesque Braga Municipal Stadium when Rangers came to town on Wednesday afternoon.
According to the Daily Record, representatives from 25 different clubs were in attendance for a stirring Europa League round-of-32 clash with the likes of Borussia Dortmund, Manchester United, AC Milan and Chelsea in the midst of putting together an extensive array of summer targets.
But it is the presence of a Leeds United talent spotter in Portugal that captures the imagination. After all, it’s not that long ago since the Championship title chasers were linked with a move for one of Braga’s star performers.
It was talkSPORT who reported last year that Leeds were mulling over a move for the £8 million-rated centre-back Bruno Viana. And it just so happens that a certain Brazilian centre-back was in action as Braga fell to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Steven Gerrard’s uber-committed Rangers side.
It remains to be seen whether Leeds’ director of football Victor Orta has re-ignited his interest in one of the Primeira Liga’s most impressive defensive talents.
But you would imagine that a new centre-half would be right at the top of Leeds’ transfer hitlist heading into the summer window, especially with the exceptional Ben White set to return to parent club Brighton.
And Viana looks every inch a man perfect placed to thrive in Marcelo Bielsa’s back line. Not only a commanding, 6ft 1ins presence and an intelligent reader of the game, Viana has technical ability by the bucket load.
The 25-year-old has completed 91 per cent of his passes in the Europa League this season and, with that statistic in mind, he’d fit Bielsa’s death-by-a-thousand-passes approach like a tailored suit.
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