Leeds United’s academy recruitment used to be known as the ’emerging talent’ programme.Pascal Struijk, their Belgian-born defender, was an early product of it — acquired from Ajax as an 18-year-old in 2018. So too was Illan Meslier, the French goalkeeper signed (initially on loan) from Lorient the following year, then aged 19.If the ultimate aim of the scheme was on-field impact combined with improved resale value, then Crysencio Summerville, the winger named in The Athletic’s DealSheet as a player strongly interesting Manchester United, represents the jewel of it. Bought for around £1million ($1.3m) from PSV in 2020, aged 18, coming of age at Elland Road and then sold to West Ham United for about £25m in 2024.With that trajectory established, this has the makings of a defining summer, comprising a first World Cup, a first World Cup goal and now a possible transfer to a club that will be in the Champions League next term.We’ll give Manchester United due credit by assuming they weren’t merely seduced by Summerville’s sweet finish for the Netherlands against Japan in Group F on Sunday, but their analysts will have recognised it instantly, because that choreographed finish — step off the flank inside the defender, shoot with power or curl for the far corner — is what the 24-year-old does. It shouldn’t tempt anybody to think that Summerville is a one-trick pony, but observers of him over several seasons have seen that goal before, and from both sides of the pitch.The first thing to know about Summerville is that he proves the old saying that dynamite comes in small bundles. He stands somewhere in the region of 5ft 9in, with a wiry frame and low centre of gravity. The second thing to know is that he’s a wide forward or a winger, pure and simple. It’s possible that he could be reinvented as a No 10 or a deep-lying nine, but none of his coaches in England made much effort to try, and with good reason.Moving him elsewhere would water down his ability to drive beyond full-backs and get towards the byline. It would remove his dangerous ability to invert. Summerville’s pace makes him useful in a couple of respects: as a counter-attacking weapon, but also as a means of breaking through a low block.The unusual thing about Summerville’s goal against Japan was that, despite being right-footed (truth be told, he isn’t weak with either), he doesn’t see many minutes on the right. Almost 60 per cent of his appearances for English clubs have come in an attacking role on the left, facilitating situations where he can cut in from the touchline.Any amount of opposition analysis would highlight that trait as something to be wary of and negate, but Summerville has the balance and footwork to beat a player one-on-one regardless, using his strengths to unsettle one side of a defence.His career at Leeds was a slow burn until 2022, when he was thrust into a mess which ended in relegation from the Premier League. People who know Summerville would describe him as a footballer who is in no way unsure of his own ability, but he consistently put his money where his confidence was.In 2023-24, he made 41 starts in the Championship, combining 19 goals with nine assists. He was the players’ player of the year at Elland Road, but defeat in the play-off final forced Leeds to cut their cloth financially. As one of the assets that could be sold for a high price and assist with profit and sustainability (PSR) calculations, an offer of around £25million from West Ham was always likely to succeed.Injuries were never much of a problem in Yorkshire. They’ve been more of a hindrance for him at West Ham, particularly the damaged hamstring, which required surgery and cost him much of 2025. There were niggles again in the season just gone, but not enough to stop him turning out 31 times in the Premier League, scoring five goals and providing four assists.Nor did West Ham finishing in the bottom three compromise his prospects of going to the World Cup with the Netherlands. On the contrary, having only made his full international debut in March (and appearing once more before Ronald Koeman picked his 26-strong squad for the finals), Koeman liked him enough to start him in Houston on Sunday.Summerville was relegated with West Ham last season (Richard Pelham/Getty Images)West Ham’s relegation from the Premier League, like Leeds’ in 2023, makes difficult decisions unavoidable. Their wage bill will have to drop in the Championship, and player sales are a route to funding.Summerville isn’t so easy to make a big profit on this time, but two years at the London Stadium have chipped away at the bill for him, and no player’s value ever depreciated after a promising World Cup. He is under contract until June 2029, and The Athletic’s David Ornstein has reported that approximately £50million would be needed to get him.He’s a livewire, but on top of that, he’s defensively diligent too. His all-round contribution — goals and assists going forward, covering the flank behind him — was why Daniel Farke fielded him religiously in Summerville’s best year at Elland Road.Old Trafford would be a step up for Summerville, but stepping up has been the tale of his career. He was fine when Leeds threw him into the Premier League. He was exceptional when he became their first-choice winger in the Championship. He didn’t disgrace himself at West Ham, and he arrived at the World Cup as if he’d been building up to it for years.Another leap to Manchester United and the Champions League? Why not?