Huw Jenkins explains decision to deny Leeds United green light to sign Manchester United winger Dan James from Swansea City

FORMER Swansea City chairman Huw Jenkins believes he made the right move in failing to give Leeds United the green light to sign winger Dan James on January transfer deadline day.
ONE THAT GOT AWAY: Manchester United winger Dan James, centre, looked all set to join Leeds United from Swansea City on January transfer deadline day. Six months later he was facing Leeds for the Red Devils in a pre-season friendly in Australia. Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images.ONE THAT GOT AWAY: Manchester United winger Dan James, centre, looked all set to join Leeds United from Swansea City on January transfer deadline day. Six months later he was facing Leeds for the Red Devils in a pre-season friendly in Australia. Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images.
ONE THAT GOT AWAY: Manchester United winger Dan James, centre, looked all set to join Leeds United from Swansea City on January transfer deadline day. Six months later he was facing Leeds for the Red Devils in a pre-season friendly in Australia. Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images.

James travelled to Thorp Arch on the last day of the January transfer window and passed a medical ahead of a move to Leeds who were poised to sign the winger on loan with a view to making the deal permanent in the summer.

Leeds were set to pay £9m to land the winger permanently in the summer if they were promoted to the Premier League but a late disagreement over the payment of a loan fee and the sudden refusal of former Swans chairman Jenkins to sign off the transfer led to the deal's collapse as the 11pm deadline passed on January 31.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Welsh international winger's proposed move to Leeds was captured in great detail in the recent Amazon Prime documentary Take Us Home: Leeds United with James posing for photographs in the stands and United only awaiting the final green light from Jenkins.

But in a dramatic deadline day collapse, Jenkins refused to authorise the deal with the former Swans chairman resigning the next day and James staying put at Swansea before ultimately making a £15m move to Manchester United in the summer.

"I tend to do most of the transfer deadlines from my home, because it’s peace and quiet,” Jenkins told the Athletic.

“You need time to collect your thoughts and stay clear of making mad decisions.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I never deal well with being pushed into a corner and there was no way I was just going to let it happen for the sake of it.

“You take other things out of the equation, like whatever was going on up at the Leeds end, and try to make the right decisions for your club.

“I communicated with everybody at Leeds on the phone, back and forth, and I am sure they put Dan on to me as well.

“They were all trying to convince us to do the deal but I just felt from a club’s point of view, based on value and based on Graham’s success, it wasn’t right.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I thought, second half of the season, as it proved, he’d have a big impact for the club. Dan was just coming into his own.

"He had no guarantee of going straight into the Leeds team, and the uncertainty over whether they would buy him or not is not a good thing for a young player.

“Take all that into account and there was only one decision to be made.

"Thankfully, it worked out well for the football club and for Dan.”