Alternatives to Ben White in advanced stages if required in Leeds United recruitment hunt

Leeds are understood to have submitted a third bid of around £25m for Brighton centre-back White who starred on loan at the club last season when playing every single minute of every league game as United stormed to the Championship title.

The Whites have reportedly previously been unsuccessful with bids of £18.5m and £22m for a defender who is on the radar of a host of Premier League big guns but Brighton are insisting the 22-year-old is not for sale.

United's latest reported offer seems set to test the water further but Kinnear said the Whites were also well on with other options with the recruitment of White proving a challenging task.

White's contract at Brighton runs until the summer of 2022 and the defender is reported to have turned down a third improved contract offer from the Seagulls.

"Ben had a wonderful season for us last season," said Kinnear, speaking on Sky Sports News.

"He's a player that we rate very highly and we know the fans love.

"We think Ben enjoyed his time here and we have made no secret of the fact that we'd like to bring him here permanently.

"We also have to be very respectful of the fact he is a Brighton player and he is training with them currently.

"There have been discussions and I think it is going to be challenging to make him a Leeds United player.

"But if it is not Ben White, we have other options which are in advanced stages and we will be closing in on one of them soon."

Assessing how encouraged he was with developments in the transfer window and if he expected signings sooner rather than later, Kinnear said: "We know that people want to come and play for Leeds United in the Premier League so I don't think we are going to have any challenge in attracting the right players.

"What we are finding is the market is moving more slowly than it perhaps would do normally.

"Although we are only a few weeks away from the start of the season in terms of the transfer market we are only a couple of weeks into it.

"I think that deals are going to take time, we are not going to rush it, we are going to want to secure the right players but we are confident of getting the three to four key areas that we need to strengthen.

"We are confident of bringing those people in in the window."

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Thank you Laura Collins