Swansea City fended off interest in Daniel James from Leeds United in January.
Swansea City boss Graham Potter has told Dai Sport that he thinks Leeds United’s attempts to sign Daniel James ultimately weren’t worth enough money.
The Swans advanced into the last eight of the FA Cup on Sunday afternoon, hammering Brentford at the Liberty Stadium – and James grabbed the headlines.
James picked up the ball inside his own half from a Brentford free kick and blazed past the Bees defence, before finishing off his solo run with a fine finish.
The 21-year-old continues to shine under Potter, and he is putting rumours of a January move to Leeds behind him in order to star for the Swans.
As noted by the Yorkshire Evening Post, James was at Elland Road on deadline day to join Leeds on loan until the end of the season with a view to a permanent move worth more than £5million if the Whites won promotion to the Premier League.
Swansea failed to sign off on the deal though, meaning James had to return to South Wales at least until the end of the season, when Leeds could well return with a new bid.
Now though, Potter has suggested that James’ display against Brentford summed up why Leeds weren’t paying enough for James in the first place, praising him as ‘sensational’.
With James out of contract in 2020, Potter added that he wants to see the winger sign a new deal, but it’s not that simple, as James needs to agree too – and with Leeds lurking, that would be in doubt.
“You forget that these things happen in transfer windows where clubs don’t agree a price,” said Potter. “You can see why on that performance, the numbers are too low, that’s the reality in my opinion. He’s got lots to work on but he had an end product today and I thought he was sensational. Once that happens he just gets on with being a footballer, he’s been incredible for us and we’re looking forward to working with him for the future. He was ok today, wasn’t he? The ability to sprint repeatedly, it’s as high a level as you’re going to see.”
“The answer is yes, but it’s not as simple as that. All parties have to agree. It’s a process, you have to make sure everybody’s happy. In the meantime, my responsibility as a head coach is to help him play football, to carry on with his career and to reach his potential because he’s still got a lot to do. But as you see today, he’s not playing against bad players, they’re not physically weak defenders, but he leaves them for dust,” he added.
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