Leeds United rivalling Nottingham Forest and AC Milan in pursuit of defender

Leeds United are interested in signing Freiburg’s Bruno Ogbus, although they face competition from Nottingham Forest and AC Milan for the defender.

The 18-year-old is highly-rated by the Bundesliga outfit, although he is yet to make his debut for the senior side, with his game time in recent seasons coming for the U19s and the reserve side.

But, his potential has caught the eye of clubs across Europe, with AC Milan having a ‘low digit’ offer in the millions turned down for the player.

And, in a fresh development, Sky Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg revealed that Leeds have joined the race for the teenager – although it could be difficult to convince Freiburg to cash in.

“Understand that Leeds and Forest are also interested in Freiburg’s top talent Bruno Ogbus. Both clubs are monitoring the 18y/o defender. But: Ogbus is not for sale, as Freiburg want to keep him.”

Bruno Ogbus is an exciting talent

It has been reported that Freiburg’s plan for Ogbus is to integrate him into the first-team this season, and they hope that the promise of Bundesliga football will keep him at the club.

That highlights just how much they think of the Swiss youth international, and he will know that German clubs have consistently shown over the years that they offer a pathway to the first-team for younger players, so the prospect of remaining with Freiburg is going to appeal.

So, it’s clearly a model that works, and other youngsters will see Summerville’s journey, and how he enjoyed his time at Elland Road, and they will want to replicate that, so it does have a knock-on effect as well in helping the club’s reputation.

Of course, the recruitment team must always strike the right balance, but Farke’s knowledge of German football means he should be backed where possible, and it’s clear that Ogbus is an exciting prospect, so this would be a coup if Leeds could pull it off.