Leeds have been linked with a move for Vitoria defender Frederico Venancio.
Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing Sheffield Wednesday loanee Frederico Venancio from Portuguese side Vitoria Setubal this summer, despite being in and out of the Owls’ side during 2017-18.
Portuguese newspaper A Bola claim that Leeds are set to rival Wednesday for the 25-year-old defender, who is desperate to remain in English football after joining Wednesday on loan last summer.
Leeds are likely to be after a centre-back this summer – whoever takes over from Paul Heckingbottom as manager – with Matthew Pennington likely to return to Premier League side Everton this summer.
It leaves the club with just Pontus Jansson and Liam Cooper as options at centre-back, while youngsters Paudie O’Connor and Conor Shaughnessy remain on the fringes of the Elland Road squad.
It has been somewhat of a tumultuous campaign for Shaughnessy, who broke into the first team under Thomas Christiansen only to suffer an ankle injury towards the end of January that subsequently ended his season early.
The 21-year-old is expected to back in pre-season training in the coming months with the aim of regaining his place among the first team, but with the Whites expected to busy this summer, a new centre-back is likely to come in.
That could be Venancio, who made 20 Championship appearances for Wednesday last season, starting nine of the Owls last 10 league games.
Signing the two-time Portugal Under-21 international would provide Leeds with another top centre-back who could rival the likes of Jansson for a place in the side, but it would subsequently push Shaughnessy further down the pecking order.
It should convince Leeds to send Shaughnessy out on loan to a team in the Football League, in order to give him the chance to complete his recovery from the ankle injury and further his developement – a move that would benefit all parties.
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