We’ll see if this is the midfielder they’re after.
A report from Polish reporter Piotr Kozminski Thursday night said that D.C. United and Royal Antwerp FC from Belgium are interested in the services of Mateusz Klich. The 32-year-old midfielder currently is under contract with Premier League side Leeds United for another 18 months, but Kozminski believes a winter departure is likely. Adding to this speculation, following a friendly against Spanish side Elche Thursday night (where Klich scored the game-winner), Leeds manager Jesse Marsch was noncommittal of Klich’s future past that time:
️ “We should hold off on saying anything. There’s been conversations but nothing’s concrete.”
Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch discusses Mateusz Klich’s future after he scored the winner in their 2-1 friendly win at Elche.
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Klich has spent parts of his time with FC Kaiserslautern and Wolfsburg II, but the bulk of his career has been with Leeds, appearing in almost 200 games (via Transfermarkt) with the club, registering 24 goals and 21 assists with the club across all competitions, including to their promotion to the EPL. Klich also has 41 appearances with Poland’s national team, but his reduced time this season with Leeds (11 appearances and 188 minutes) may have been a factor in his omission from their World Cup side.
Klich plays largely in central midfield with some chance creation involved, whether this is the ‘attacking midfielder from abroad’ that D.C. are targeting remains to be seen; as touched upon previously, D.C. will need to work Klich under the international roster limit spots to accommodate his acquisition, and appear to be fine on players that count to the budget and/or Designated Players, before the season starts.
Highlights yonder: