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Published May 22, 2026, 12:40 PM GMT+1
Tom is a football journalist with five years of experience. He has been featured in the Non-League Paper, Crawley Observer, Sussex Express and The RedmenTV - producing features, news and conducting interviews.
For Football FanCast, Tom has sat down with a number of names from the industry, including Ally McCoist, Philippe Senderos and Chris Waddle. Elsewhere, he has covered the National League South final, the Formula E London Prix, Crawley Town and Brighton’s U21s.
Tom enjoys writing features about teams in the Football League and Premier League, whilst also receiving the opportunity to conduct interviews on behalf of FFC.
Having written for The RedmenTV, he is particularly an expert on all things Liverpool.
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With survival secured, Leeds United have shifted their focus towards the summer transfer window and welcoming defensive target Danilho Doekhi ahead of Borussia Dortmund.
Those at Elland Road are wasting no time ahead of the summer window. They want to back Daniel Farke as early as possible with the aim of achieving more than just survival next season.
The 49ers already deserve plenty of praise for how successful their recruitment was last summer. Anton Stach, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Noah Okafor all stand out as excellent additions who have played a pivotal part in the club's Premier League survival.
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Leeds United are desperately looking to build on their Premier League survival this summer.
Now, it's all about repeating that success, starting with the arrival of an impressive defensive target.
According to TeamTalk, Leeds have launched contact to sign Doekhi from Union Berlin this summer. The Yorkshire club are currently in pole position to land his signature ahead of Borussia Dortmund and talks are underway.
Like Calvert-Lewin last summer, the Whites have the chance to land a bargain deal, with Doekhi set to become a free agent upon the end of his contract this summer.
In terms of quality, the 27-year-old would certainly suit the Premier League. He's proven to be one of the best set-piece threats in Germany, with as many as seven goals to his name in all competitions. At a time when set pieces are so valued in English football, that trait would prove to be incredibly useful for Leeds.
It would also be quite the statement for a club like Leeds to fend off any interest from Champions League side Borussia Dortmund to land the defender this summer. It's the exact statement that the 49ers need to make.
"Strong" Doekhi could complete Farke's back three
It's not a major surprise that Leeds are targeting another central defender. Farke's decision to switch to a back three was always going to require long-term additions and Doekhi would be an excellent option on that front.
He's already earned plenty of praise in Germany too, with former Union Berlin chief Oliver Ruhnert saying: "Danilho has the ideal conditions for a modern central defender: he has a strong physique but at the same time is also very agile."
|
Minutes |
3,060 |
2,847 |
|
Goals |
5 |
|
|
Tackles |
44 |
37 |
|
Recoveries |
106 |
116 |
|
Duel success |
62.9% |
56.1% |
Next to someone like Pascal Struijk in Leeds' back three, the Union Berlin star could thrive. He provides added set-piece threat and is more aggressive than the Elland Road star, making more tackles and enjoying better duel success. It would be an ideal match.
Everything points towards a deal that Leeds should absolutely push to land this summer. In Doekhi, they'd have a solid defender, who provides the very set-piece trait which is thriving in the Premier League.
Read next: Leeds pushing to sign "top-class" £25m star
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