Leeds United’s pursuit of Mykhailo Mudryk is all but over, hijacked at the last by a Tottenham side spending like a club determined to rip up the Premier League order.
The Ukrainian winger is set to undergo a medical at Spurs after the north London club surged ahead of Leeds in the race for his signature. A wide attacker has been near the top of Daniel Farke’s wishlist all summer. Mudryk, for a brief spell, looked like the marquee answer.
That hope has evaporated on deadline day.
Spurs strike while Leeds stall
Reports had placed Leeds firmly in contention, with talks progressing and the Elland Road hierarchy pushing to arm Farke with more firepower before tonight’s 11pm cut-off. Then Tottenham moved.
The Lilywhites swept in and, according to transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano, struck an agreement with Chelsea for a paid loan that includes a buy option set at around £75 million. Crucially, that clause is not mandatory, giving Spurs control over whether this becomes a long-term marriage or a one-season fling.
Romano wrote on X that “everything [is] agreed also on personal terms,” with Mudryk ready to join Tottenham and “re-join De Zerbi,” a nod to the coach under whom he previously flourished.
For Leeds, it is a brutal reminder of their current place in the food chain. For Tottenham, it is another bold stroke in a window that has already veered towards the extravagant.
Tottenham’s lavish rebuild rolls on
Roberto De Zerbi’s side have been tearing through the market. Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi and Martin Dubravka have all arrived on free transfers, while Jan Paul van Hecke cost £52m from Brighton. The real statement fees came in midfield and attack: Mateus Fernandes for £85m from West Ham, Sandro Tonali for £92.5m from Newcastle United, and Savinho for £75m from Manchester City. Omar Marmoush has also joined on loan from City.
Mudryk is set to be another high-profile piece in a squad being rebuilt at speed and at enormous cost.
He is not expected to be the only arrival through the door from a London rival, either. Spurs are also preparing medicals for Tosin Adarabioyo, with the defender and Mudryk both poised to make the jump from Chelsea.
A career interrupted, a reputation to rebuild
Mudryk’s move comes at a pivotal moment in his career.
Now 25, he was hit with a four-year suspension in 2024 after failing a drug test that showed a low concentration of the banned substance meldonium. He has not played since November of that year, his trajectory stalled just as it seemed ready to explode.
An appeal has now cleared him to return, with his doping ban resolved and the green light given at the end of last month. Tottenham are gambling that the explosive winger who once terrified full-backs can be rediscovered, sharpened, and unleashed in the Premier League.
For a club already committing huge sums, it is a calculated risk with potentially enormous upside.
What it means for Leeds – and two Welsh wingers
Back in Yorkshire, the fallout is immediate.
Leeds still want an attacker before the window slams shut, but it will not be Mudryk. That reality sharpens the focus on two Welshmen already in the building: Daniel James and Harry Wilson.
Wilson, a free transfer arrival from Fulham in the summer, now has a clearer path to prove he belongs in Farke’s starting XI. His delivery, vision and set-piece threat could become central to Leeds’ attacking plan if no big-name winger walks through the door tonight.
James, meanwhile, enters the season with something to prove. The last 18 months have been scarred by injuries and frustration, his blistering pace too often seen from the treatment room rather than the touchline. Missing out on Mudryk gives him a chance – and a warning. Farke’s determination to “bolster his arsenal in the final third” means no one can feel safe.
Leeds finished 14th in the Premier League last season. The club’s ambition is to climb, not cling on. That ambition is why the search for another attacker will continue right up to the 11pm bell.
Gnonto on hold, clock ticking
One more subplot hangs over Elland Road: Wilfried Gnonto’s future.
The Italian is expected to leave for Fiorentina, but that move remains conditional. Leeds will only sanction his exit if they secure a replacement, a stance that now looks even firmer with Mudryk off the table.
So the deadline-day equation is clear. Find an attacker, and Gnonto can go. Fail, and he stays, whether that suits all parties or not.
As Tottenham usher Mudryk into their medical room and add yet another big name to De Zerbi’s dressing room, Leeds are left scanning the market, the clock, and their own ambitions.
By 11pm, we will know whether this was just a missed opportunity, or the moment their entire season’s attacking plan had to be rewritten on the fly.
