Leeds are submitting a bid to sign Ethan Ampadu from Elland Road

Leeds United fans will be very proud of their team this season in the Premier League and beyond.

Indeed, Daniel Farke’s Whites reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing by just one goal at the hands of Chelsea, and comfortably survived the play-offs, to counter the notion that all promoted teams sink instead of swim when they arrive in the promised land.

The summer is now on the horizon at Elland Road, with Farke ready to bolster his struggling squad with new faces to ensure there is no slump for a second season under his leadership in the Premier League.

As it happens, Leeds look set to close in on their first signing of the summer.

Leeds are closing in on the first deal of the summer

Leeds have hit the jackpot in recent times by exploring the free transfer market. Just last summer they secured the signing of former Everton and England player Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Alongside Lukas Nmecha, the striker has been a big part of Farke’s side as they defend their top-flight status, with Calvert-Lewin the most impressive, powering 13 goals in all competitions.

Now, Leeds managers are set to use a similar tactic, with their first move of the summer likely to be another free agent.

Indeed, according to reports in France, Leeds are ‘closing in tight’ on signing midfielder Hidemasa Morita. It also emerged that the contract has been sent his way.

The Sporting number five is said to be showing ‘great enthusiasm’ in swapping Portugal for England. It looks like Leeds’ guaranteed survival in the Premier League will boost the deal.

How Morita can be Farke’s new Ampadu

It’s not a brilliant signing, but the wheeling and dealing has paid off for Calvert-Lewin, and Farke may be about to win his next Ethan Ampadu by taking Morita on a free.

While the likes of Calvert-Lewin and Noah Okafor will knock you out of your seat at Elland Road with their goalscoring prowess, Ampadu’s prowess flies under the radar in comparison.

The 25-year-old is a popular part of Farke’s side, even though he has won 5.3 duels in each Premier League match this season, allowing the relegation-threatened side to play in the middle. Even Joe Rodon, known as an aggressive defensive tackle in his own right, comes up short in this regard, winning 4.1 duels per game.

The stalwart midfielder has also produced the odd goal and assist this season, with the Leeds captain marked as a “key” part of the Elland Road machine by scout Jacek Kulig, as the Whites chased promotion.

Morita works in the same way at Sporting as an all-round midfielder. However, he doesn’t always get his flowers in a team that has boasted the fearsome heat of Viktor Gyokeres in recent years.

Scoring one goal and four assists this season in Liga Portugal, while showing some Ampadu-style bite in his game, he would surely go down as a firm fan favorite in West Yorkshire if he were to join and breathe as he has in the Portuguese capital.

When Ampadu first joined, not much was made of his purchase, but now, the Leeds starting team would feel strange without the presence of the Welsh hero.

In the long term, Morita will hope he is seen as another reliable midfielder Farke and Co can rely on, with the Osaka-born ace also capable of defending as a right-back, when not powering home headlines.

Ampadu has this in his locker too, as he often fills in as a centre-back for West Yorkshire.

This has all the makings of a smart signing if left out, as Leeds continue to make relevant additions, rather than moving forward, this summer.