Leeds United sign £20m Aston Villa striker and Newcastle United gem in summer transfer window prediction
Leeds United are expected to be busy over the course of the 2026 summer transfer window
Leeds United will head into the 2026/27 season full of optimism, after bucking the trend of promoted clubs going straight back down to the Championship and preserving their Premier League status. Once the World Cup and pre-season process is out of the way, they’ll be fully focused on their opening league fixture against Nottingham Forest.
The 2026/27 Premier League fixtures start highly favourably for Daniel Farke’s side, who follow up their first match with games against Brentford, Brighton, Crystal Palace and Newcastle. While these will be tough tests, it’s worth noting that the Whites don’t have to face the likes of Arsenal, Man United, Spurs or Chelsea until the autumn.
Over the next few weeks, Leeds will look to be busy in the summer transfer window, and business is likely to be booming once the 2026 World Cup concludes next month and players turn their thoughts back to domestic football. The club spent around £100m on new signings last season, and will want to continue to spend and strengthen their squad ahead of the upcoming campaign.
The club already look to be making headway in their attempts to sign soon-to-be free agent Harry Wilson. A number of other Premier League clubs are also said to be keen, but it appears that the 29-year-old Wales star could by swayed by the opportunity to link up with his international teammates Joe Rodon, Daniel James and Ethan Ampadu at Elland Road.
Further signings will follow, and we wanted to get an idea of the names who could be heading to LS11. To do so, we loaded up our trusty copy of FM26, and had the beloved football management simulator predict exactly who the Whites will sign over the course of the summer transfer window.
Leeds United’s summer signings predicted: Marmol to Potts
Mika Marmol - £11m from Las Palmas: Leeds kicked things off by signing the ex-Barcelona defender, who decided to leave Las Palmas after they failed to seal promotion from the second tier of Spanish football. He’s a former Spain youth international who plays primarily as a centre-back, but can also do a job on the left side of a back four.
Riqui Puig - £5m from LA Galaxy: Shortly after Marmol’s arrival, the Whites continued their apparent strategy of recruiting former Barcelona youth players by snapping up Puig from the MLS for a bargain fee. He’s a pint-sized central midfielder renowned for his dynamic attacking play. Whether he’d be able to cut it in the Premier League is another matter, however.
Tammy Abraham - £25m from Aston Villa: Despite only joining the West Midlands club last January, the Villans opted to flip Abraham to free up some funds to make signings elsewhere. The 28-year-old joined Leeds on a four-year deal as they sought to solve their striker shortage. He’s previously starred for the likes of Roma, Chelsea and AC Milan.
Freddie Potts - £13m from West Ham: The Hammers were under pressure to sell following their relegation, and the Whites swooped in to snatch Potts. The 22-year-old midfielder has bags of potential, and usually plays in a deep-lying playmaker role. He’s also skilled in both holding on to the ball and winning it back when the opposition seize possession.
Leeds United’s summer signings predicted: Grabara to Ngonge
Kamil Grabara - £13m from VfL Wolfsburg: Leeds moved decisively to buy a new first-choice goalkeeper, settling upon the 27-year-old Poland international. He’s played in England twice before - once for Liverpool, where he didn’t make a single appearance, and on loan with Huddersfield. He went on to further his career significantly, impressing at FC Copenhagen in particular.
Joe Willock - £10m from Newcastle United: We’re not sure why Leeds would want to sign three central midfielders in one window, but that’s exactly what they did. The ex-Arsenal youth star struggled for first team opportunities at St. James’ Park, and opted to reignite his career at Elland Road.
Antoine Mendy - £11m from OGC Nice: Some impressive cameo appearances at the World Cup with Senegal caught the eye of Leeds’ scouts, and he was brought in following the conclusion of the tournament. He’s a 22-year-old right-back with bags of experience playing in European cup football. A bit of a bargain, this one.
Cryil Ngonge - loan from Napoli: The Whites rounded things off with a deadline day swoop for Ngonge, who’s a 26-year-old Belgium international. He was signed to give Farke more options on the right wing. Ngonge was frozen out of the Napoli side, and had loan spells with Torino and Espanyol before agreeing another short-term spell with Leeds.