Jaka Bijol is set to sign for Leeds United in the coming days after the Whites agreed a fee with Udinese for the centre-back.
Bijol is the perfect target for Leeds this summer for a relegation battle and then firm interest materialised between Leeds and the Slovenian Bijol.
In recent days, it has been revealed Leeds’ first bid for Bijol was knocked back and there was said to be work to do in terms of agreeing a fee for the giant central defender.
Bijol already agreed to move to England and all that was left was for Leeds to secure the deal ahead of reported interest from Newcastle in Bijol. It seems as though a breakthrough has now been found.
Jaka Bijol deal agreed with Leeds – Fabrizio Romano
Recently, it was reported that Bijol had given Leeds his word to join the club this summer but further developments have arisen since Bijol stated he wants a fresh start away from Udinese this summer.
Now, Bijol’s agents are flying over following reports that the amount separating Leeds and Udinese in their valuation of Bijol was around £6.5 million – with Leeds bidding £14.5 million and Udinese wanting a fee closer to £21 million.
That same report said that Udinese are willing to sell for £17 million, which is close to the fee Fabrizio Romano reports as a compromise appears to have been reached.
The Italian transfer guru says it is a done deal between the clubs and has given his trademark here we go in the process. He says an agreement has been reached for a €22 million (£18.7 million) fee.
Crucially, that includes add-ons in the deal after it was revealed earlier today that personal terms for Bijol are also in place.
It’s not clear how much of the add-ons will be tied to survival and other appearance-related bonuses, but Romano adds that the next steps are for the defender to have a medical with the West Yorkshire outfit soon.
How Leeds intend to utilise Jaka Bijol
Bijol has operated as a left-sided central defender in a back four for his country, and plenty of times as the right-sided centre-back at club level in either a back four or three.
He can also be utilised as the central centre-back in a three, where his aerial prowess and box defending come to the fore.
| Team | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| Rudar Valenje | 30 | 3 | 0 |
| CSKA Moscow | 96 | 7 | 8 |
| Hannover 96 | 31 | 0 | 0 |
| Udinese | 95 | 5 | 4 |
| Slovenia | 63 | 1 | 2 |
Perhaps Leeds and Daniel Farke intend to use him in each of these roles depending on who his partner is. More importantly, that could also depend on the opposition.
It’s entirely plausible that Farke chooses to be more flexible in his approach, meaning a back four will be in use at times and a back three in other matches or game states.
