Leeds United loanee confirms future talks as Junior Firpo compares Whites man to £44m star

Leeds United gained ground on second-placed Ipswich Town over the weekend despite a frustrating 1-1 draw at Rotherham United on Friday night. The Whites dominated the first half in South Yorkshire and took an early lead through Crysencio Summerville.

Farke's side had chances to add to their lead but failed to take them as the Millers equalised through Hakeem Odoffin late in the first half. The Whites were unable to muster a second-half response but still gained a point on Ipswich who were beaten at West Brom on Saturday night. Fourth-placed Southampton also dropped points as they were held to a draw by Huddersfield Town. They remain a point behind Leeds.

Up next for the Whites is a home clash with Swansea City on Wednesday evening. And as the Whites prepare for that fixture, we have rounded up the latest news from Elland Road below.

Roca confirms Real Betis talks

Leeds United loanne Marc Roca has been speaking about his future and confirmed he is in discussions over a possible permanent move to the La Liga club. The Spaniard joined the Whites from Bayern Munich in the summer of 2022 and is under contract at Elland Road until the end of the 2025-26 season.

He left Leeds on a season-long loan following the club's relegation and has impressed since making the move to Real Betis. Unconfirmed reports last week claimed the clubs were in talks over a permanent deal. Roca was one of several players to move on from Elland Road but despite a number of departures Leeds have enjoyed a strong start to the Championship season and sit third in the table with 17 games played.

Speaking about his future, Roca told PTV Sevilla: “It is true that we are in contact with the club. We will see how the negotiations progress, but I am very happy here.”

Firpo compares Rutter to PSG star

Leeds defender Junior Firpo has hailed forward Georginio Rutter as 'unplayable' and drawn comparisons to Paris Saint-Germain's Ousmane Dembele. Rutter endured a difficult start to his Leeds career as he was signed for a club record fee and thrown into the thick of the relegation battle. Dembele made the move to PSG from Barcelona in the summer for around £44m, having joined the Spanish club from Borussia Dortmund for a staggering £135m fee in 2017.

However, the Frenchman has displayed his quality this season and has endeared himself to supporters with his workrate and creative displays to help Farke's side sit third. His performances so far have led to praise from Firpo. He said: “The thing with him (Rutter), he can use both feet. That ability makes him unplayable. He is good, another one I see with that is Dembele. You don't know if he’s a lefty or a righty. Georgie has that too.”