Leeds United may have to brace for the departure of a "fantastic" player, who now wants to leave the club this summer, transfer expert Graeme Bailey has revealed.

Leeds' summer rebuild well underway

Having been promoted from the Championship last season, Leeds have been busy assembling a squad capable of surviving in the Premier League, with centre-back duo Sebastian Bornauw and Jaka Bijol recently sealing moves to Elland Road.

Striker Lukas Nmecha has also secured a move to West Yorkshire, with Daniel Farke looking to bolster his options in attack, despite already having the 2024-25 Championship top scorer at his disposal in the form of Joel Piroe.

Lecce centre-forward Nikola Krstovic also remains of interest to the Championship title-winners, with it being revealed they are now pushing to get a deal over the line, which means one of Farke's current striker options may need to make way.

In an interview with Leeds United News, Bailey has now revealed that Mateo Joseph could be on the move this summer, with the forward eager to seal an Elland Road exit and return to his home country of Spain, amid interest from La Liga side Real Betis.

The transfer expert said: "From what I’ve most recently been told, he does want to go back to Spain. But Leeds have got to be careful, in my opinion. You can’t just let Mateo Joseph go and do whatever and then be left short. That’s the consideration.

"But I think Joseph will end up back in Spain. Betis have sold a forward in Jesus Rodriguez to Como and that’ll be used to help pay for Joseph.

"From what I’m hearing, he could be accelerated into the first-team squad for Spain very quickly. And I think that’s probably in his consideration as well."

Krstovic could be excellent replacement for Joseph

Piroe was Leeds' main man in attack last season, scoring 19 goals in the Championship, but Joseph also featured regularly, picking up seven goal contributions in the second tier, and his departure could be a blow for Farke.

At just 21-years-old, the £13m-rated youngster still has a lot of room to develop, but he has already caught the eye of scout/writer Jacek Kulig, who described the forward as "fantastic" a little over a year ago.

That said, Krstovic could be a solid replacement for Joseph, given that the Montenegro international was regularly amongst the goals for Lecce last season, netting 12 times across 38 appearances in all competitions.

Having already proven himself in a major European league, the Lecce star could be an instant upgrade on Joseph, so if the starlet makes it clear that he wants to leave this summer, Leeds should not stand in his way.