Pontus Jansson completes switch from Leeds United to Brentford

Jansson leaves Marcelo Bielsa’s Whites following a breakdown in the relationship between the club and the Swede who was handed extended leave before the start of pre-season training. The defender had been training with boyhood club Malmo in a bid to keep fit during his ongoing absence and Brentford then saw a bid for Jansson’s services accepted. Both Leeds and Jansson wanted a quick resolution to the situation with Jansson ending a spell of three years at Elland Road following his switch from Torino in August 2016, initially on loan, before making the move permanent the following year. Jansson put pen to paper on a five-year deal in October 2017, committing to the Whites until the summer of 2022 and the Swede leaves the club having made 120 appearances for the Whites, scoring nine goals. Jansson made 39 appearances for the Whites last term but cut a dejected figure following United’s play-offs semi-final second-leg defeat to Derby County with the defender pictured slumped next to the advertising boards. The Swede has now signed a three-year deal with Brentford, with the Bees having a further year’s option. The defender also turned down other offers to go to Griffin Park. Jansson completed a medical in central London on Monday and has now began preparations to join the Brentford squad at their training camp in Austria. The Swede will fly out to join the group on Tuesday. Brentford head coach Thomas Frank told the club's official site: "We are very pleased with Pontus’ arrival. "The defence is an area that we have been looking to strengthen and we feel that Pontus will bring a lot to the group. "Pontus will add to the quality and competition for places that we need to adapt to different situations over the course of the season. “Pontus is a top defender who brings immense professionalism, a great attitude, experience, defensive robustness, leadership qualities, and threat from set pieces to our side. "Everyone knows about the Brentford model but to develop the young players we have here, we also need experience and quality in the squad to get the perfect balance. "To have someone with his CV turn down other offers to join us shows where we stand as a club now.” Phil Giles, Brentford co-director of football, added: "Pontus is not a player we have been tracking for some time. "In fact, it was only very recently that we were alerted to his availability and reacted quickly to the opportunity. "It says a lot about Pontus that he chose to sign for Brentford as much as we chose to sign him. "There is a mutual feeling that we can be successful together, and we wish him well during his time with us." Leeds have also moved on another centre-back with defender Liam Kitching having joined League Two outfit Forest Green Rovers for an undisclosed fee. The 19-year-old academy product has spent the past two seasons on loan with Harrogate Town but has now departed the club, signing a three-year deal in Gloucestershire. Kitching helped Harrogate to promotion from the National League North during the 2017/18 campaign and was re-signed by Simon Weaver on a temporary basis last term. The young defender made 34 appearances for the club during his second loan spell, bagging three goals in the process.