The latest transfer talk from Leeds United as a Whites star assesses speculation linking him with a move away from Elland Road.

Leeds United defender Pascal Struijk has reflected on a summer transfer window that brought speculation his seven-year stay at Elland Road could be coming to an end.

The 26-year-old joined the Whites from the famed Ajax youth system in January 2018 and has gone on to make over 160 senior appearances for the club after making his senior bow as a late substitute in a 2-0 win against Hull City almost two years after his arrival. Struijk has become a popular figure with the Elland Road faithful and is a two-time Championship winner after being part of the Whites squads that claimed the second tier title under Marcelo Bielsa and current boss Daniel Farke.

However, with a major overhaul of the Whites squad taking place during their preparations for a return to the top flight, Struijk was strongly linked with several clubs on the continent with Football Insider claiming La Liga club Villarreal were aiming to land the Leeds defender before the summer transfer window came to a close earlier this month.

However, Struijk remained part of Farke’s squad and he has gone on to play each and every minute of the Whites’ five Premier League fixtures so far this season and also wore the captain’s armband in a defeat at title contenders Arsenal and a goalless home draw with Newcastle United a week later. With his place in Farke’s starting eleven looking to be cemented, the defender has looked back at a summer that brought confirmed interest in his services.

Speaking to BBC Radio Leeds, the defender said: “I never doubted I wasn’t going to be at Leeds, because I’m still under contract (until 2027). But there had been some stuff that personally I had, some interest here and there. For me, to play in the Premier League with Leeds, I’ve done it before and I wanted to do it again.”

Moments

Rodon and Bijol might well end up being the first choice centre-back pairing but Bijol's suspension for the Everton opener gave Struijk an opening which he has taken with both hands and it's hard to argue with two clean sheets from the first three games. Rodon and Struijk as things stand. | Getty Images

placeholder image — Rodon and Bijol might well end up being the first choice centre-back pairing but Bijol's suspension for the Everton opener gave Struijk an opening which he has taken with both hands and it's hard to argue with two clean sheets from the first three games. Rodon and Struijk as things stand. | Getty Images

Struijk is one of few survivors from the Whites last Premier League campaign as they suffered relegation from the top flight in a season that saw four different managers occupy the home dugout at Elland Road. Jesse Marsch, Michael Skubala, Javi Gracia and Sam Allardyce all spent time in charge of a Whites squad that were relegated by a defeat against Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of the season before current boss Daniel Farke stepped in to oversee attempts to bounce bis ack during the following summer.

After missing out with a Championship play-off final defeat against Southampton in his first season in charge, the former Norwich City boss led Leeds to the second tier title last season before overseeing a dramatic change in style during the summer transfer window as a more physical Whites side have been led into battle in the Premier League this season.

Struijk has assessed the changes with the squad over the summer and believes there has been a need to adapt to life back in the Premier League.

He said: “I wouldn’t say there is much on the ball that we want to do from our usual processes but it’s the personalities against the ball - the moments where you suffer as a team. This is where the personality and the strength of the team has adapted a little bit from what we had before. Now we are quite physical. All our set-pieces chances we have to use, because sometimes you don’t get as many as in the Championship.”

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