7 goal contributions in 9 games: Leeds United summer target starring in Europe after Championship departure.
Leeds United were among the ambitious admirers as Gabriel Sara looked poised to move on from Norwich City in the summer.
Leeds United were claimed to have made a derisory bid of just £5m for Norwich City standout Sara amid a battle with Turkish side Galatasaray for his signature.
The Brazilian had cemented himself as one of the Championship’s best midfielders in his time with the Canaries. Unsurprisingly, he ended up moving to a higher level for a far bigger fee.
leeds united, 7 goal contributions in 9 games: Leeds United summer target starring in Europe after Championship departure
Image courtesy of: JOHN SIBLEY/REUTERS.
It was Galatasaray who got a deal for Sara over the line, paying a reported £20m up front plus £2.5m in performance based add-ons. A sell-on clause was also included in his high-profile move to the Turkish side.
And, to the surprise of few, Sara has made quite the impact in Turkey.
Proving his worth
It hasn’t taken long for Sara to show why he commanded a big fee and deserved a move to a club above the level of former side Norwich City and ambitious admirers Leeds United.
The 25-year-old has almost instantly locked down a starting berth with Galatasaray and his return of two goals and five assists in nine Super Lig games shows why. He also has one assist to his name in three Europa League games.
Sara’s contributions both domestically and in European competition have helped them go unbeaten in the league and the Europa League. The only defeats suffered came in Champions League qualifiers against BSC Young Boys.
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Few complaints
There’s no hiding that Norwich City would have loved to have had Sara on the books for longer but it had become clear he had outgrown the Championship, hence why apparent interest from Leeds United went nowhere.
Few people will complain about that given how the Brazilian had starred in the second-tier, and he has justified those beliefs with his early efforts in Turkey.
If he continues in this vein, it might not be long before Sara earns another eye-catching move.
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Norwich will benefit from that thanks to the sell-on clause in his deal and it would likely be a pricey move.
