Leeds United Sign Nico Elvedi from Borussia Monchengladbach

Leeds United have landed experienced Swiss defender Nico Elvedi from Borussia Monchengladbach in a deal worth up to £8.5m, handing Daniel Farke a trusted lieutenant at the heart of his back line.

The 29-year-old has signed a three-year contract at Elland Road, ending an 11-year spell in Germany and reuniting with Farke, who coached him at Monchengladbach during the 2022-23 season.

“He is also a big point for this change,” the defender said of Farke. “It was just one year but I loved to have him as a manager. I learned a lot from him and I will learn a lot now.”

Monchengladbach accepted an offer of £6.8m up front, with a further £1.7m in add-ons, for a player who became a mainstay of their defence. Elvedi leaves having made 364 appearances for the Bundesliga club, a figure that underlines both his durability and his status in their modern era.

On the international stage, his pedigree is equally clear. Elvedi has 73 caps for Switzerland and played every minute of their run to the quarter-finals of the most recent World Cup, anchoring a back line that impressed on the biggest stage.

For Leeds, this is not a vanity signing but a targeted move. Elvedi becomes the club’s fourth arrival of the summer window, following goalkeeper James Trafford, winger Harry Wilson and fellow defender Tarik Muharemovic, as Farke quietly reshapes the spine of his squad.

His arrival has already triggered movement. Sebastiaan Bornauw has left Elland Road to join Hamburg on a season-long loan, a direct consequence of Elvedi’s signing and a clear indication of how the defensive hierarchy is being redrawn.

There was more business earlier on Wednesday. Striker Joel Piroe departed for West Ham on a season-long loan, another significant piece in what is fast becoming a decisive summer of change in West Yorkshire.

Elvedi, though, is the headline: a seasoned international, steeped in Bundesliga battles, now entrusted to marshal Leeds’ defence as Farke builds a side in his own image.