Sheffield United 'agree' transfer as Leeds United star set for '£2.5m exit' amid departure wish

Sunderland can finally kick on with their preparations for the new season after appointing Regis Le Bris as Michael Beale’s long-awaited replacement. Mike Dodds took charge for the final months of the season, but it even took weeks beyond the end of the campaign to land a full-time replacement.

But all eyes are now looking forward, with Le Bris charged with improving on a disappointing bottom half finish achieved by the Black Cats last season. In the meantime, we have rounded up all the latest news and transfer rumours surrounding the rest of the Championship.

Shackleton nears Blades move

Sheffield United are said to have struck a deal to land Leeds United star Jamie Shackleton. The Blades have had a slow start to the summer transfer window, but they are now looking to get deals done, and particularly on free deals, at least until they can clear out some of the big earners that have followed them down from the Premier League.

Shackleton is out of contract at Leeds this summer, and he will become a free agent at the end of this week, but not for long. According to Football Insider, Shackleton has agreed to join the Blades and the deal will become official in the coming days.

Leeds boss Daniel Farke said of Shackleton in February: "He's best in a Leeds United shirt, that's for sure," said Farke. "I really like and rate him, especially because he's so flexible and can play different positions. For us in recent months whenever we've needed him he's played right-back and I can remember a top performance at left-back. He played a major role in our away win at Ipswich.

“He always gives 100 per cent, lots of identification for Leeds United, with this club for many years. You always want to have this player, not always in the spotlight but always reliable, wherever you need him and whenever you need him. We will look after Jamie that's for sure."

Llorente set for exit

Another player who is expected to leave Leeds is defender Diego Llorente, who has spent the last 18 months out on loan with AS Roma. According to Siamo de Roma, Llorente has no interest in returning to England should Roma decide not to re-sign him this summer.

It’s claimed Roma are considering offering the 30-year-old a three-year deal, and it would only cost them £2.5million. But while the offer has not arrived yet, what is being made clear is that the Spaniard does not want to play Championship football.

Burnley still in limbo

Jay Rodriguez has been speaking about how Burnley have begun pre-season without the presence of a head coach following Vincent Kompany’s decision to join Bayern Munich.

"It’s just been business as usual," Rodriguez told Sky Sports. "Bellers (Craig Bellamy) and Jacko (Mike Jackson) have done a great job so far and the lads have worked really hard, so it’s just continued to keep improving and looking forward to the first game.

"You want to get ready as soon as you can and get the momentum going for the season, so the first six games are really important. It’s obviously a long season, so it’s really important to have a good start. The Championship is so difficult, it’s physically and mentally [draining] and the fixture list is quite full on, but it’s a great league to be in and it’s something that we look forward to. Hopefully we can have a similar season to what we had [in the Championship] last time round."