Leeds United reportedly plan to fight hard to retain the services of Crysencio Summerville and Wilfried Gnonto in January.
Upon suffering relegation from the Premier League, as many as 13 players were allowed to leave Elland Road on a permanent or temporary basis.
They were replaced by nine incomings, but Daniel Farke and club officials were able to find a way to retain the services of two of their most prized assets.
Summerville and Gnonto both had widespread interest in their signature and would have generated substantial fees for Leeds.
Instead, they are part of a squad that currently sit in fourth position in the Championship standings and are in contention to return to the top flight.
Of the two, Summerville has been by far the more impressive, contributing seven goals and five assists from 14 appearances in the senior tier.
Meanwhile, Gnonto, who at one stage reportedly showed his frustration in not securing a move elsewhere, has only chipped in with one strikes and one assist from 11 outings.
According to Football Insider, Leeds will attempt to keep both players until at least the end of the season.
Although the pair remained as key players under Farke, the report acknowledges that Leeds may change their stance if they receive a bid too attractive to turn down.
As it stands, Summerville is tied to Leeds until the end of 2025-26, while Italy international Gnonto has a further 12 months on his existing terms.
Burnley and Everton have both been credited with an interest in Summerville of late, despite it being questionable whether they could afford the Dutchman.
Everton were also strongly linked with a move for Gnonto earlier this year, only for Leeds to hold firm and leave the Toffees to look elsewhere.
A recent report claimed that Summerville had no plans to try to force a move elsewhere, instead being happy with his status as an important player. body check tags ::