Leeds United have verbally agreed a deal worth £20million ($26.4m) with Brighton & Hove Albion for the sale of Pascal Struijk.
The terms of the transfer were agreed on Saturday, with Brighton set to send the offer formally to Leeds.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the deal, who spoke anonymously as they were not authorised to publicly, have confirmed the fee agreed is £20m. Struijk’s contract at Elland Road was due to expire in June 2027, which meant Leeds risked losing the 26-year-old for nothing in 12 months if he was neither sold nor tied down to new terms this summer.
Struijk departs after eight and a half years in West Yorkshire, during which time he has made 196 appearances for Leeds. The Ajax academy product played a part in each of the club’s Championship titles of 2019-20 and 2024-25.
Brighton, meanwhile, had been seeking defensive reinforcements after selling Jan Paul van Hecke to Tottenham Hotspur for £52m earlier this month. Fabian Hurzeler’s side have also made multiple bids for Spurs centre-back Luka Vuskovic, who is at the World Cup with Croatia.
What now for Leeds?
Daniel Farke’s side will now try to fill the void left in their squad by Struijk’s departure. The Dutchman was United’s only natural, senior, left-footed centre-back and they will now need to recruit someone in that mould.
United were very keen to retain Struijk. They pitched him a new contract, which would have kept him at the club through the peak years of his career, but sources close to the player made it clear he was ready for a fresh challenge.
Illan Meslier is the only other departure Leeds have confirmed this summer, while, earlier this week, The Athletic reported Harry Wilson has agreed the terms on a contract with the club, which starts on July 1.