Report: Leeds eyeing ‘new Di Maria’; PL rivals had £13.5m bid rejected

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With the January transfer window little more than two months away Leeds United and Manchester City are continuing to keep tabs on Atletico Lanus winger Pedro de la Vega, according to Clarin.

There was a brief period earlier this year when it felt like every player linked with a move to Elland Road had an Argentine passport.

By the time the window closed on 5 October, however, Lucas Martinez Quarta, Adolfo Gaich, Matias Zaracho and Rodrigo De Paul were nowhere to be seen in West Yorkshire.

But while Martinez Quarta, Gaich and Zaracho are all out of the picture after joining Fiorentina, CSKA Moscow and Atletico Mineiro respectively, one Spanish-speaking South American remains on Leeds’ hit list.

20-year-old De La Vega is already being labelled the ‘new Angel di Maria’ in Argentina and, with five goals and a series of eye-catching performances under his belt, those comparisons aren’t a million miles wide of the mark.

Like the PSG superstar, De La Vega is an explosive, versatile and unpredictable attacker capable of producing something out of nothing.

And he won’t come cheap either.

Correio do Povo reported Wolves had a £13.5 million bid rejected as Lanus wanted to keep De La Vega until next year. By that time Leeds may be ready to firm up their interest in a player who has caught the eye of the legendary Javier Zanetti.

Clarin adds that Man City are also interested and there could be another twist.

The mutual respect between Marcelo Bielsa and Pep Guardiola is well documented and City have a history when it comes to loaning talented young forwards to Leeds – see Jack Harrison.