Leeds United transfer news: Whites defender wanted by three Premier League rivals?

Leeds United defender Pascal Struijk has reportedly attracted interest from Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa and Newcastle United.

The 26-year-old has been a top performer for the Elland Road club since their return to the Premier League after earning promotion from the Championship as winners during the 2024-25 term.

Struijk has made the left side of the Leeds defence his own, starting 27 Premier League matches for Daniel Farke's side, standing out as the first-choice option in the backline for the Whites.

The Dutchman was linked with a January switch to Spurs during the second half of 2025, with the Lilywhites looking to change their fortunes at the time under the struggling leadership of Thomas Frank.

Since making the January 2018 move from Ajax, Struijk has featured in 190 competitive matches for Leeds, finding the net on 14 occasions and helping the Yorkshire-based outfit to a pair of Championship titles.

Spurs, Villa, Newcastle want Leeds hero Struijk?

According to SportsBoom, relegation-threatened Leeds face a battle to retain the services of Struijk at Elland Road in the long-term, with a host of Premier League giants keen on the ball-playing centre-back.

Firstly, it is claimed that Championship-bound Tottenham remain interested in securing the services of the 26-year-old, who has an outside shot of making the Netherlands' squad for the World Cup.

On top of the Lilywhites, it is understood that both Champions League-chasing Aston Villa and faltering Newcastle are huge admirers of Struijk, with the top-flight pair putting the defender on their respective transfer shortlists.

During the summer of 2022, the Dutchman put pen to paper on a contract extension at Elland Road until June 2027, with Leeds hopeful of stretching the player's story at the club even further into the future.

Farke's side are supposedly demanding at least £30m for the talents of Struijk, who is a unique talent at the top level given his left-footed abilities and comfortableness with playing out from defence.

Who needs Struijk the most?

In the midst of a relegation dogfight, Tottenham are preparing for the possibility of Championship football, with both Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero likely to depart should Spurs suffer an unthinkable drop.

As a result, Struijk represents an intriguing replacement option for the Lilywhites' current centre-back options, with the 26-year-old potentially open to spending a single year in the Championship at the North London club.

The former Ajax man's technical qualities would serve him well in an Unai Emery team at Villa Park, where the Villans could be competing in the Champions League next season - an appealing prospect for the Leeds defender.