Middlesbrough’s Emmanuel Latte Lath has once again been tearing up the Championship, with 10 goals to tie him with Leeds United’s highest scorer this season, the ever-divisive Joel Piroe.
But there appears to be a significant difference between Joel Piroe and Emmanuel Latte Lath. Daniel Farke has noted this discrepancy on several occasions, with the Leeds manager frequently noting Piroe’s lack of pace.
Latte Lath, on the other hand, is an attacking force, and his arrival at Elland Road would provide Farke with a new outlet up front as his side competes for promotion to the Premier League.
Leeds United News originally reported Leeds United’s interest in Latte Lath during the January transfer window. Since then, however, it has been revealed that MLS team Atlanta United is preparing to sign Latte Lath for a club record £16 million.
Middlesbrough manager Michael Carrick spoke recently about Latte Lath’s interest. He went on: “For me to sit here and say I’m confident or I’m not confident [of keeping Latte Lath], it doesn’t really matter or affect it, because we’ve no idea what might come.”
Leeds United’s updated stance on the Emmanuel Latte Lath deal is revealed.
According to an emerging report from TeamTalk, Latte Lath’s move to Leeds United has been effectively halted, with Farke to blame. According to the report, despite Joe Gelhardt’s potential sale to Hull City and Patrick Bamford’s injury, the German is satisfied with his striker choices.
Farke is content to head into the second half of the season with Piroe and Mateo Joseph as his strikers. That means Leeds are unlikely to make a bid for the 26-year-old Latte Lath right now, with Atlanta appearing to be the frontrunner.
If Latte Lath moves to the MLS and joins Atlanta United, he will be joined by Mateusz Klich, a former Leeds player who moved from D.C. United earlier this winter.
Leeds United’s Joe Gelhardt is expected to join Hull City on loan for the remainder of the season. However, he is not the only Leeds youngster poised to go in January.
It has also been claimed that Charlie Crew would leave Leeds United on loan in the coming weeks. He is reported to be attracting interest from other EFL clubs, and with Ilia Gruev set to return to play for Leeds soon, Crew may have even more competition for game time.
Leeds appear to have several options for the remainder of the January transfer window. Although nothing appears imminent, a deal for Latte Lath appears to have been fully ruled out.