Leeds United are not interested in signing Middlesbrough defender Daniel Ayala, according to Leeds Live.
Ayala had been linked with a January move to Elland Road by the Northern Echo earlier in the week, who suggested we and Stoke City were interested in adding the 2020-free agent to our ranks in the mid-season market.
The towering 6 ft 2 defender was said to have long been on our scouting department’s radar, and could be targeted in January as Marcelo Bielsa is keen to add numbers to his central options at the back.
However, sources have told Leeds Live that Ayala is not one of United’s targets, and there is nothing in the rumours linking us to the £3.6mililion-rated Spaniard.
Ayala is out of contract next summer and Boro are unlikely to offer the Liverpool product a new deal due to the 29-year-old being one of the highest earners at the Riverside Stadium, per the Northern Echo’s report.
Should Leeds sign Boro's Ayala?
Yes, absolutely
No, he isn't good enough
While Ayala may not be relocating to West Yorkshire in the New Year, it is expected that some of Bielsa’s fringe options will be packing their bags and moving on from their time at Elland Road.
Outcast midfielder Ouasim Bouy and Eunan O’Kane would be expected to be moved on, after the former refused to mutually terminate his contract in the summer and if the latter is fit following a lengthy absence through injury.
Lewie Coyle’s loan spell with Fleetwood Town will also be reviewed over the winter, and could see his move become permanent.
In terms of incomings, Leeds Live have suggested any arrivals would be as a result of departures, with Bielsa likely to request a forward to replace Jack Clarke if he returns to Tottenham Hotspur and if Kiko Casilla is issued a ban following allegations of racially abusing Charlton Athletic’s Jonathan Leko.