When I first decided to start this blog, there was only ever one place I could begin. Like every football fan hopelessly addicted to the transfer window, I spent an unhealthy amount of time dreaming about the players capable of transforming Leeds United into something bigger than survival, bigger than mid-table, and bigger than merely existing in the Premier League. This blog, like much of football, is about dreaming. As fans, we don’t emotionally invest ourselves in this sport simply to finish 14th every season and quietly avoid relegation. We dream about ambition. We dream about the “what ifs”. We wake up on a cold January morning before a difficult game with Manchester City and we convince ourselves that there may actually be a chance. What if we have another Stuart Dallas moment? What if we can just get another 3 points? What if we can just get to the summer? What if we can just sign that one player?
Football has always survived on an intangible currency: hope. Hope that the next season will be different. Hope that the next signing changes the trajectory of a club. Hope that one day your team will stop merely existing in the middle order of the Premier League, and start genuinely frightening people again. Now, rationally, most supporters understand that football is built on cycles, finances, and compromise. Emotionally though? We still spend every summer dreaming about the player capable of changing everything. And be honest, how many of us are actually rational?
Over the years, we’ve heard countless attempts to define what Leeds United should aspire to become. Andrea Radrizzani once criticised Wolves’ relationship with Jorge Mendes before later rowing back and openly admiring the model they had built. Then came comparisons to Leicester City: smart recruitment, buying low, selling high, gradual progression, sustainability. Rationally, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with any of that. Unless of course you look at both clubs in 2026.
The dreamer in me can’t help feeling sick by those comparisons. Wolves? Leicester? Was that really the height of our ambition? What happened to the Leeds United model? Recruit well, terrify opponents, and fuck everyone else.
Part of that obsession with dreams probably comes from growing up during the O’Leary years. Back then, Leeds United felt ambitious. Big players arrived. Big nights happened. Watching on as a young lad in Ireland, I didn’t really appreciate that those moments were fragile. As a kid, you assume Champions League football, title races, and terrifying opponents under the lights are just…normal. Then football grows up, and unfortunately so do you. I recently wrote about Georginio Rutter and the idea of nostalgia, and looking back. Doing so lit a fire in my belly, and had me longing for European nights under the lights once again. I want to experience that as an adult.
That Rutter article also sparked a lot of interesting discussion amongst the fan base about what Leeds need this summer. There is no question that attacking reinforcements are necessary, especially behind the striker, and on the right hand side. USMNT international Brenden Aaronson has done an admirable job this season. According to FotMob, Aaronson has played a total of 2465 league minutes, contributing 4 goals and 5 assists (the most of any Leeds player). One could argue that he has gone a long way to repairing his reputation amongst parts of the fan base following his post-relegation exit.
At the same time though, it’s also fair to acknowledge the frustrations. There are still moments where Aaronson lacks composure, physical presence (although Ladislav Krejci might disagree), or the technical quality required to consistently elevate Leeds in Premier League matches. With the American now entering the final year of his contract, this summer may represent Leeds United’s best opportunity to cash in. The discussion post-Rutter article was also an eye-opener for me. I thought many fans would be in favour of a return for sentimental reasons, but I found that a large majority were against his signing. And for the price that Brighton would likely demand for the player, I can understand that sentiment. There will be other options across the continent that Leeds will be aware of. And I can only hope and dream that Matías Soulé is one of those.
La Joya: Matías Soulé
Now, let’s get real for a second. For full transparency, this article was originally supposed to be another deep dive into Ismael Saibari. Unfortunately for me, I woke up the following morning to reports that Bayern Munich were already in advanced negotiations with PSV for the player. And thus the dream died. So, following the immortal advice of Ross Geller from Friends — it was time to “PIVOT”! This blog is nothing if not adaptable, and I’m ready for far more transfer heartbreak over the coming weeks. This time, however, our journey takes us to Italy. Bellissima.
Matías Soulé is one of those players who puts you on the edge of your seat when he gets the ball. The type that would cause a ripple effect across Elland Road. Realistically, he is probably being monitored by clubs operating higher up the food chain than Leeds United. In truth, this is probably the first player I’ve covered who genuinely falls into the “dream on” category. You know the type. That tab on Football Manager that allows you to filter out “unrealistic signings”. The type of player that has “absolutely no interest whatsoever” in joining your club. And yet, perhaps that’s the entire point of today’s post. Dreaming. If Leeds United are serious about these so-called “stretch targets” this summer, then Soulé is exactly the calibre of player they should at least be exploring. Or dreaming about, anyway.
The Athletic’s Beren Cross published an article stating that a “left-footed, right-sided attacker” sits high on Leeds’ summer wishlist, and stylistically, Soulé feels like exactly the sort of player Leeds don’t really have.
PLAYER PROFILE
Primary Positions
- Right winger
- Right-sided attacking midfielder
Secondary Positions
- Number 10
- Left-sided creator
- Advanced playmaker
PHYSICAL PROFILE
It’s important to tackle something straight away when looking at a player like Soulé. And it’s this – he is a completely different type of player to a more physical player like Saibari. Even Rutter, who we have already looked at, has a more physical presence than the Argentinian. The big worry is obvious: would he physically cope in the Premier League?
Because unlike a Saibari or Rutter, Soulé isn’t the type of player who is going to physically dominate games. He possesses decent height (I say that as someone shorter than him), but he lacks explosive power, and elite acceleration. He is more of a technical player reliant upon balance and coordination than strength. That’s where the worry starts because the Premier League punishes physically passive attackers, and players unable to survive repeated athletic duels. Soulé will never overpower defenders physically. For him to work in England, his brain and his left foot have to be good enough to make up for the lack of power. When this works, he looks like one of the most naturally creative left-footed attackers in Europe. When it doesn’t, he can look physically overwhelmed, overly passive without possession, and lacking the athletic explosiveness required to consistently dominate Premier League football.
ATHLETICISM
Realistically speaking, Soulé is not explosive, or devastatingly quick. Nor is he the type of player who is going to physically overwhelm the opposition. But he is agile, balanced, and technically gifted. His movement is smooth and he wins duels through body shape, timing and technical ability rather than raw athletic force.
BALL CARRYING
This is where Soulé becomes a really interesting player because the above graph almost tells two completely different stories depending on how you interpret it.
At first glance, the dribbling numbers don’t scream “untouchable winger”. He isn’t posting absurd take-on volume or terrifying one-v-one efficiency in the mould of someone like Vinícius Júnior or Raphinha. If Leeds fans are expecting a pure touchline chaos merchant who repeatedly skins full-backs for fun, the data probably looks slightly underwhelming.
But that’s not really what Soulé is. The graph instead paints the picture of a player whose carrying is heavily tied to clever movement rather than pure pace and power. The biggest clue is the enormous volume of carries into the final third combined with strong progressive carry numbers. That suggests a player who constantly moves attacks forward, but does so through intelligence, timing and the way he shapes his body, rather than simply knocking the ball beyond defenders and sprinting past them.
Watching him, you can see this immediately. Soulé carries around defenders rather than through them. He slows defenders down, shifts their feet, manipulates angles and then glides into spaces that shouldn’t really exist. There’s a patience to his movement that feels very South American. At times it almost looks lazy until suddenly he’s gone past two players with a disguised touch and opened the pitch completely. Rayan Cherki has demonstrated this for Manchester City in the 2025/26 season.
That is why the graph matters. His progression numbers are elite despite his dribble success rates not being completely outrageous. Usually that points toward a player he who isn’t just running into people for the sake of it, but usually knows where he’s trying to take the game. He advances attacks constantly because he understands where space is about to appear before defenders fully recognise the danger themselves.
Importantly, this is also why his game probably translates better centrally than purely as an old-school right winger hugging the touchline. Soulé looks far more natural drifting diagonally into pockets, carrying into half spaces and finding gaps in packed defences, than he does repeatedly isolating defenders on the outside. That’s important when projecting him to Premier League football.
DRIBBLING PROFILE
Soulé’s dribbling profile is probably one of the easiest areas to misread if you rely entirely on raw numbers without considering how he actually plays.
Because statistically, the graph suggests a good dribbler rather than some unstoppable elite take-on monster. But stylistically, the numbers don’t really tell the full story.
A lot of modern wingers build their entire game around explosiveness. They want open grass and direct foot races against full-backs. Soulé is almost the opposite. His dribbling is much more manipulation-based. He uses feints, disguised touches, shoulder drops and tiny directional changes to destabilise defenders before accelerating into the gaps that movement creates.
That is why his key pass numbers, progressive passing and final-third involvement are all so high. His dribbling is often a mechanism to pull defenders out of position rather than simply beat a man for the sake of it. Defenders constantly hesitate because they are never fully certain whether he’s about to shoot, slip a reverse pass, recycle possession or suddenly shift direction onto his stronger foot.
Interestingly, his crossing numbers are also much stronger than people probably expect from this type of profile. That suggests he isn’t entirely dependent on coming inside constantly and does retain some capacity to hurt teams from wider positions. But overall, the graph still points far more toward inverted creator than traditional winger.
The other major takeaway is that Soulé’s game currently relies heavily upon rhythm and technical manipulation rather than physical dominance. In Serie A, where matches are often slower and more tactically controlled, that can become devastating because defenders are forced into constant hesitation. The Premier League is different. Defenders recover faster, press more aggressively and punish hesitation far more ruthlessly.
That doesn’t mean Soulé cannot succeed there. Far from it. But it probably does explain why there remains a slight projection risk compared to someone like Saibari, whose physical profile already looks immediately Premier League-ready. Or Bundesliga-ready. Damn you Bayern! Soule’s adaptation will likely depend less on whether he is technically good enough, because he absolutely is, and more on his decision-making and whether he can play quicker when Premier League defenders are flying into him.
FINAL THIRD OUTPUT
This is where Soulé’s value comes to his team. All of the below stats are according to FotMob.
FROSINONE — 2023/24
Serie A
- 11 goals (19th overall)
- 3 assists
- 7.36 FotMob rating (15th overall)
- 82 chances created (1st overall)
- 8 big chances created (24th overall)
- 2.90 successful dribbles per 90 (3rd overall)
Context matters enormously here because Frosinone, relegated in 18th place, were not a dominant possession side. As a result, Soulé was carrying huge creative responsibility in a struggling team which significantly increases the value of the production because creating in a struggling team is often harder than producing inside elite systems. The numbers are even more impressive when you consider that Soulé only turned 21 during March of this season.
ROMA – 2024/25
- 5 goals (52nd overall)
- 5 assists (22nd overall)
- 7.45 FotMob rating (2nd overall)
- 51 chances created (13th overall)
- 9 big chances (13th overall)
- 1.80 successful dribbles per 90 (26th overall)
ROMA — 2025/26
- 6 goals (41st overall)
- 5 assist (19th overall)
- 7.08 FotMob rating (59th overall)
- 45 chances created (24th overall)
- 5 big chances created (58th overall)
The Roma numbers are different.
Not necessarily worse. Just…different.
At Frosinone, Soulé basically was the attack. If they were progressing the ball, creating a chance, dragging themselves up the pitch or doing anything remotely dangerous, there was a good chance he was involved somehow. That naturally inflates certain volume numbers because everything funnels through one player.
Roma was a completely different environment.
Better players.
Better structure.
More control.
More shared responsibility.
As a result, the raw numbers were never really going to look as explosive because Soulé was no longer being asked to carry an entire attack on his back every single week. But I actually think parts of his game became more mature there.
The dribble numbers dropped quite noticeably, but honestly I don’t think that’s automatically a bad thing. At Frosinone, there were moments where he almost looked like he felt obligated to force things because nobody else really could. At Roma, his game became calmer. More selective. Less frantic. He started choosing moments better instead of trying to solve every attacking problem himself. And despite the lower headline numbers, the creative output still remained really strong. The assist numbers improved relative to league ranking, his chance creation remained high and the progressive passing numbers suggest he was still heavily involved in moving attacks forward rather than drifting out of games completely. That probably explains why his FotMob rating in 2024/25 remained one of the strongest in the squad despite the reduction in goals and dribble volume.
Then 2025/26 is where things become a little more complicated. The talent is still obvious. The creativity is still there. The progression is still there. But the consistency becomes less convincing. And Soulé himself was playing through injury.
There are games where Soulé genuinely looks like one of the most gifted attacking players in Serie A. The technical quality is ridiculous at times. Then there are other matches where he drifts around the edges of the game without really grabbing control of it. That’s probably the biggest thing separating him from the truly elite young attackers right now. But even during the quieter periods, the core profile never really disappears.
- The carrying.
- The manipulation.
- The disguised passing.
- The ability to move defenders around.
That stuff is visible across all three seasons regardless of the tactical environment around him. And honestly, that’s probably why clubs will still look at him and think there’s another level still sitting in there waiting to come out.
GOAL THREAT
Soulé’s goal threat is underrated overall, perhaps because of his sub-par stats for Roma over the past two seasons. He would give something to Leeds that they desperately lack. A player capable of cutting inside from the right who possesses excellent left-footed shot technique. Igor Paixão’s YouTube highlights, which I have watched extensively, demonstrate a player who is dangerous when shooting from the edge of the box, especially with those curling finishes into the far corner. Soulé offers a similar profile – this time from the right hand side.
However, I’m by no means suggesting he’s the solution to all our problems, and the finished article. Soulé occasionally becomes overly ambitious, or too reliant on perfect execution. This can sometimes allow defenders to set and get into position, or worse, could frustrate the natives of LS11. This flaw becomes more difficult in a quicker, nastier league where defenders give you far less time to be clever.
CREATIVE PROFILE
This is where Soulé would generate genuine excitement. He is a player who understands that timing is everything. The disguised passes. The delayed releases. The little slips around the corner into runners that defenders never seem fully prepared for. He constantly moves defenders around before releasing the ball rather than simply reacting to what’s already in front of him.
Watching him, you constantly notice little moments where he sees the picture before everybody else on the pitch. There’s a patience to his game that feels unusual for someone his age. He doesn’t always rush the final action. He’ll hold the defender for half a second longer, wait for the movement ahead of him and then suddenly open the entire defence with one disguised pass. That’s probably why his ceiling feels so high creatively. I mentioned Cherki earlier in this article and Soulé has a similar type of feel to his game.
PASSING
His passing overall is outstanding. Particularly around the edge of the box where games become crowded and chaotic. This is where Soulé looks most natural. Tight combinations. Reverse passes. Slipped through balls. Quick one-twos around Farke’s kryptonite – compact defences. He constantly creates little angles for himself and others that most players simply don’t recognise quickly enough.
OFF THE BALL MOVEMENT
Off the ball, he’s intelligent as well. He drifts constantly between midfield and defence looking for pockets to receive in. Rather than demanding huge touch volume all game, Soulé seems happy quietly moving around the structure waiting for the exact space to appear. That probably explains why there are matches where he can feel strangely uninvolved for periods before suddenly producing the best attacking sequence of the game out of nowhere.
DEFENSIVE WORK
The concerns begin when the game becomes more physical. Defensively, Soulé is willing enough, but you don’t watch him and immediately think “this player loves defensive intensity”. That’s important because the Premier League can be brutal for wide attackers who drift in and out of games physically. He can close space intelligently and he reads passing lanes fairly well, but the aggression isn’t always there consistently. The repeated pressing intensity, the emotional edge, the constant duelling — those are the areas that would almost certainly need development if he moved to England. And Farke simply will not stand for a player who does not contribute defensively.
PREMIER LEAGUE ADAPTATION
Technically, Soulé looks Premier League quality immediately. Physically, there’s still uncertainty.
The Premier League punishes passive attackers very quickly. Especially players who prefer manipulation and control over chaos and athletic domination. Soulé is not some relentless transition monster who wants every game played at 100 miles an hour. His game is much more controlled than that. He wants combinations. He wants angles. He wants little moments between the lines where he can manipulate defenders rather than simply running through them.
THE LEEDS FIT
If we’re being completely honest with ourselves, Leeds United desperately need an upgrade on Brenden Aaronson this summer. Soulé would instantly improve Leeds as we would look more inventive, more dangerous between the lines, and far less predictable. From a Leeds perspective, the fit is fascinating because Leeds arguably still lack someone who can actually unpick packed defences. There’s pace. There’s running power. There’s aggression. But there still isn’t really a player who slows the game down creatively and opens compact structures consistently through technical quality. Soulé would immediately improve chance creation and offer more ideas around the box. And while Aaronson’s engine and work rate are undeniable, Soulé appears much more natural as a final-third footballer — someone who can actually hurt teams rather than just press them into submission.
FINANCIAL CONTEXT
Financially though, this is where the realism kicks in. According to The Athletic, Roma paid roughly €26m to sign him from Juventus which tells you immediately this is not hidden-gem recruitment anymore. And reports from La Repubblica suggest the club currently values him at no less than €40m. However, the situation is complicated slightly by Roma’s financial position.
Multiple reports in Italy suggest Roma still need to generate significant income before June 30th due to their settlement agreement obligations, with La Repubblica reporting that Soulé is one of the names the club could consider sacrificing if the right proposal arrives. Roma are also said to want to strengthen in attack with links to Greenwood (Marseille) and Summerville (West Ham) emerging. Concerning Soulé, Brighton and Aston Villa have both reportedly already spoken with the player’s entourage, as well as Dortmund, while Roma are said to be demanding around €40m before seriously entertaining negotiations.
If Premier League interest intensifies and Roma need cash quickly before the accounting deadline, the situation could become much more fluid than this writer initially thought before starting this article Ugh! Competition for the player is hotting up, and there’s a reason I spoke so heavily about “dreams” at the beginning of this article. But Leeds’ pursuit of striker Jørgen Strand Larsen in January, and their willingness to pay a large transfer fee, gives me hope that at least one big deal can be made this summer. And if it’s Soulé, then that will get the pulses racing.
WHERE HE NEEDS TO IMPROVE
1. Physicality
This is the biggest concern as he can be outmuscled, disrupted physically, and overwhelmed athletically. And I think Leeds fans have had enough of that from watching Aaronson.
2. Defensive Intensity
Defensively, he’s still inconsistent. He has a bad habit of drifting defensively, avoiding duels, and press passively. This is not something Farke or the natives will accept.
3. Consistency
It’s important to remember that Soulé is still young, and developing. There are games that pass him by without involvement.
CEILING
The ceiling here is genuinely enormous. If everything develops correctly physically, Soulé has the technical quality to become one of the best in Europe. The passing range, manipulation in tight spaces and creativity around the box are already operating at an extremely high level for his age. You can absolutely see a pathway where he develops into a Champions League-level attacking playmaker or the sort of Premier League creator that bigger clubs eventually end up paying ridiculous money for. The talent itself is not really the question. The physical adaptation is.
FLOOR
Because equally, there is another version of this career where the technical quality remains beautiful to watch but never fully dominates at the highest level physically. The concern is not whether Soulé can play football but whether the athletic profile consistently survives the intensity and aggression of football at the highest speed. If the physical side never quite catches up, there’s a risk he becomes one of those technically gifted creators who always looks lovely on the ball but struggles to fully impose himself against bigger, quicker and more aggressive sides.
WHAT I LIKE
- Creative intelligence
- Unpicking packed defences
- Comfortable on the ball
- Passing vision
- Dribbling quality
- Press resistance
- Ball striking
- Half-space creativity
- Combination play
- Left-footed creativity
WHAT WORRIES ME
- Physicality
- Defensive intensity
- Athletic explosiveness
- Consistency
- Can disappear physically
- Can struggle in faster, more physical games
- His face sometimes resembles Marc Roca
OVERALL LEEDS VERDICT
I genuinely believe Soulé is exactly the type of signing capable of raising Leeds United’s technical ceiling. He would give Farke something the squad currently lacks: a left-footed creator from the right who can drift inside, slow defenders down, and actually open teams up around the box. But he is not the finished article. The physical side worries me, the defensive work would need sharpening, and there are games where he drifts too much. But that is probably the only reason Leeds would have even the faintest chance. If he were already complete, he would not be anywhere near our shopping list. And yet, if Leeds somehow pulled off a signing like this, those dreams of European nights under the lights at Elland Road might not feel quite so impossible after all.
