Leeds United have rewarded Jack Harrison with a new contract as Javi Gracia's men aim to maintain their Premier League status.

Weren't Leeds close to selling Harrison?

It has been another turbulent campaign for the Yorkshire side this season with their top-flight status on the line as they enter the final nine games of the season.

Victory earlier in the week against Nottingham Forest may have eased the concerns at Elland Road as they were able to climb up to 13th spot.

But the gap to the relegation zone remains just three points leaving Gracia's men in a precarious position ahead of their next game against Crystal Palace.

However, amid their issues on the pitch, Leeds have been able to tie Harrison down to a new deal at Elland Road which will extend his contractual stay through to 2028.

This comes just months after the winger came close to leaving Leeds for Leicester City before the Whites pulled out from the transfer in January.

Indeed, speaking on the Inside Elland Road podcast, journalist Graham Smyth has issued an insight on the deal to extend the 26-year-old's time in Yorkshire:

(40:10) "I think getting that deal over the line will be good news. He needs to be talking about it since the World Cup break. He expected his representative to fly over for talks with Victor [Orta] in the new year and then the January thing happened, and I don't even know if you would call it a wobble on his part.

"If he thought there's a possibility of being sold to Leicester, then he probably just acted as any player who thought they were going to be sold to Leicester would."

Does Harrison deserve a new deal?

The Whites are certainly showing a lot of faith in the 26-year-old winger with a new deal which has added a further five years onto his stay with the club.

Harrison has been a player who Leeds have had to battle to keep ahold of in the past with the likes of Newcastle United also believed to have shown a strong interest.

It is reported the Whites had slapped a £35m+ price tag on the Englishman when Newcastle were sniffing around and it has to be questioned what his valuation may be now on the back of this new deal.

The 26-year-old has had a solid season overall having returned four goals and six assists in the Premier League (via Transfermarkt).

However, consistency is something which he will surely be looking to work on with four of those 10 goal involvements coming in the space of the first three games.

Harrison then endured somewhat of a barren run in the middle of the campaign until late where he has since scored three times and added two assists in his last six league games.

Junior Firpo hailed Harrison as "one of the best" and it is not too surprising when you consider how much the winger helps out defensively with an average of 1.43 tackles per game this season (via FBref).

But now it is time for Harrison to continue his bright form in order to help the Whites stay afloat for the new campaign.