Heckingbottom failed with bid for Simon Eastwood in January; could he finally sign him for Leeds?

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Leeds United need to sign a new goalkeeper this summer.

With the play-offs once again out of the question for Leeds United, another summer of transfer activity is needed, with manager Paul Heckingbottom set for his first transfer window as Whites boss.

Heckingbottom has had over a month to analyse his Leeds squad and may have an idea of what he needs this summer, and it’s undeniable that he must bring in a new goalkeeper this summer.

Leeds landed Felix Wiedwald and Andy Lonergan last summer after the exits of Robert Green, Marco Silvestri and Ross Turnbull, but Wiedwald has been a complete disaster and Lonergan hasn’t shown that is anything more than cover.

Wiedwald has lost his place to youngster Bailey Peacock-Farrell, and it seems inevitable that Leeds will now pursue a new goalkeeper in the summer, with one recent Heckingbottom target potentially ideal.

In January, Heckingbottom told the Barnsley Chronicle that he made a bid for Oxford United goalkeeper Simon Eastwood, but the League One club refused to sell after rejecting the £350,000 offer.

Heckingbottom suggested that he wanted to return with a new bid for Eastwood, but the move never materialised – and finally signing him by luring him to Leeds could be an option this summer.

Eastwood, 28, has been one of the top goalkeepers in League One since his 2016 move to Oxford, and he would offer a safe pair of hands between the sticks for Leeds after the error-strewn shenanigans of Wiedwald this season.

Eastwood is no stranger to West Yorkshire having started his career with Huddersfield Town and then played for Halifax Town, with a return potentially appealing – and if Heckingbottom is looking for a proven goalkeeper to step in this summer, then his long-term target Eastwood makes perfect sense for Leeds, even if he isn’t a big-name addition.