Leeds United hit the jackpot when they landed Dominic Calvert-Lewin on a free transfer in the summer of 2025 after he was released by Premier League rivals Everton.
The England international was let go by the Toffees after he only scored three goals from 6.75 xG in the league in the previous campaign, but he has been a roaring success at Elland Road.
Since the start of the 2025/26 campaign, the 29-year-old marksman has scored 18 goals in the Premier League for the Whites, including four goals in seven matches this term, providing great value as a free transfer.
The club have also had success when spending big on players in the past, though. For example, they made a profit on Georginio Rutter after his time in West Yorkshire.
How Leeds made a profit on Georginio Rutter
In January 2023, Leeds signed the France U21 international from Hoffenheim for what was a club-record fee of £35.5m at the time, but he joined a dysfunctional side that was then relegated from the Premier League.
The drop down to the Championship allowed the French attacking midfielder to flourish under Daniel Farke, as he was given the reins to be the centrepiece of the attack in the second tier.
Leeds fell short of promotion, losing to Southampton in the play-off final, but Rutter delivered outstanding performances at the top end of the pitch throughout the 2023/24 campaign.
|
23/24 Championship |
Georginio Rutter |
Leeds rank |
|---|---|---|
|
Goals |
6 |
6th |
|
xG |
12.34 |
3rd |
|
Assists |
15 |
1st |
|
xA |
10.52 |
2nd |
|
Big chances created |
22 |
1st |
|
Key passes per game |
1.9 |
2nd |
|
Penalties won |
3 |
1st |
The left-footed star was one of the star performers in Farke’s side, registering 21 goal contributions, and he showed off both his technical ability and physicality, winning 7.8 duels per game in the Championship.
Leeds providing him with the platform to showcase his physical and technical qualities convinced Brighton to splash £40m on his services in 2024, which meant that the Whites made just shy of £5m profit on the mercurial playmaker.
Leeds have unearthed their new Georginio Rutter
In present day, the Whites now have a player who looks like their new version of Rutter, and he is an even bigger talent than Calvert-Lewin for the club.
Leeds needed a new left-sided centre-back after Pascal Struijk left to reunite with Rutter at Brighton, and they swooped to sign Tarik Muharemovic from Sassuolo for a fee of £34m.
Whilst he is not an attacking player like the French ex-Whites number ten, the Bosnia international shares a lot of similarities with the former Leeds star.
Like Rutter, Muharemovic has emerged as a star for the club as a young left-footed talent from Europe who offers quality physically and technically at Elland Road.
As a central defender, the quality of his defending is mainly what he should be judged on, but the 23-year-old talent is also an exceptional passer of the ball.
The £34m-rated star ranks within the top 22% of centre-backs in the Premier League for line-breaking passes completed (78) this season, which speaks to his ability to play passes through lines under pressure to build attacks for Leeds.
|
26/27 Premier League |
Tarik Muharemovic |
Rank vs CBs |
|---|---|---|
|
Chances created |
3 |
Top 22% |
|
Big chances created |
2 |
Top 1% |
|
Assists |
2 |
Top 1% |
|
Line-breaking passes |
78 |
Top 22% |
|
Accurate long passes |
20 |
Top 16% |
|
Successful passes |
339 |
Top 25% |
|
Successful dribbles |
4 |
Top 9% |
He has been one of the top-performing central defenders in the Premier League with the ball at his feet, showing that he has Rutter-esque creative qualities, despite playing in a totally different position.
The left-footed defender showed off his physicality and creativity in one play last weekend when he flicked the ball on to assist Calvert-Lewin in the 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
Muharemovic is not just a technically impressive centre-back, though, as he is also an outstanding out-and-out defender for the Whites, having won 70% of his ground duels in the division this term.
The Bosnian colossus ranks in the top 11% of players in his position for defensive contributions (78) and the top 6% for clearances (52) in the Premier League, which shows that he has been one of the top defenders in the opening seven matches.
Like Rutter, Muharemovic has emerged as a star for Leeds because of his mercurial left-foot, his creativity, and the physicality that he brings to the pitch, making him a complete player.
He is an even bigger talent than Calvert-Lewin, who is six years older and has only completed 54% of his attempted passes this season, and could go on to be sold for a profit in the future if he continues to be unreal at Elland Road.
The Whites may already be worrying that Muharemovic will not be in West Yorkshire for very long, as was the case for Rutter, who left after 18 months.
