Ex-Leeds United loanee in 'advanced talks' to leave Tottenham Hotspur in 'loan-to-buy' deal

The transfer window officially opens in less than 24 hours as EFL, Premier League and European clubs get ready for a busy summer of player trading. Leeds United are facing another season in the Championship after a narrow defeat in the play-off final at Wembley.

After the initial heartbreak, there is plenty of optimism heading into next campaign as the Whites eye promotion to the Premier League at the second time of asking. Despite the reality facing Leeds that some key players will leave, there is still plenty of time for Daniel Farke and 49ers Enterprises to assemble a squad strong enough to challenge at the top of the table.

However, the most recent transfer talk involves a couple of former Leeds players who look set for early moves during the summer window, as we round up the latest news and rumours below.

Spence in ‘advanced talks’ with Genoa

Former Leeds loanee Djed Spence is closing in on a move back to Serie A side Genoa, according to a report from Football Insider. Spurs are looking to offload the player this summer and his move to Italy is set to be a loan-to-buy deal as a permanent switch worth £7m will become a requirement of the deal if certain clauses are met.

Spence arrived at Elland Road on loan last summer but was sent back to North London just days after the January transfer window opened. He had made just seven appearances under Farke before being sent out on loan by Spurs again, joining Genoa, where he played 16 times for the club, starting eight of those games.

Discussing Spence’s early departure from West Yorkshire, Farke said back in January: "We analysed the first half of the season, especially the impressions made over the festive period. Obviously, when you make decisions in January it's not a short-term decision. We wanted to take the impressions of the festive period into account and share thoughts and discuss things.

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"We came to the conclusion that we will end the loan for Djed [Spence], and he will return back to Tottenham. We are grateful for his time here and wish him all the best at Tottenham because he is a player of great potential and he's a cool guy with a really good heart."

McKennie move to Aston Villa ‘very close’

In other news, Weston McKennie’s move to Aston Villa is ‘very close’ to being agreed, claims Fabrizio Romano. The Leeds flop enjoyed a minor resurgence with Juventus last season after a disastrous six-month spell with the Whites.

His move to Villa Park is part of the deal for Douglas Luiz to join Juventus with the Serie A club paying €20m and trading McKennie and Samuel Iling-Junior to secure a move for the Brazilian. Villa are reported to have already made a contract offer to McKennie, who made 19 appearances for Leeds during his loan spell in the 2022-23 season.