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Ezgjan Alioski will struggle to be a key part of Marcelo Bielsa’s future plans at Leeds United if he stays put this summer, according to Noel Whelan.

The Lowdown: Future up in the air

The Whites enjoyed an excellent season back in the Premier League and the aim now will be to keep hold of key figures and push on again next year.

One player who has been continually linked with a move away is Alioski, with Galatasaray reportedly tipped to snap him up and his current deal expiring imminently.

Other reports though have claimed that he is still discussing his future with Leeds, however, suggesting a new deal could yet be signed at Elland Road.

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The Latest: Whelan claims Alioski won’t feature much

Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan hinted that Whites hero Alioski should move on this summer, claiming a lack of regular football will come his way if he stays:

“You would have thought representatives of Alioski would have been wheeling and dealing and getting things in place.

“As a player, I’m thinking I’m not going to get in ahead of Harrison. I’m not going to get in ahead of Dallas or Raphinha.

“They’re going to bring in another winger, I’m sure, this summer as well. I’m sure they’re going to bring in a natural full-back who will also be ahead of Alioski.

“From a player’s point of view, if he’s happy being on the bench, week in, week out, and fighting for a position, then great, absolutely fantastic.

“But in my opinion, he’s not getting in before any of those mentioned above or a new full-back that comes in.”

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The Verdict: Time to move on

While the idea of Alioski remaining at Leeds is certainly no bad thing, it does feel as though he has reached at natural conclusion at the club, following 171 appearances in Yorkshire.

At 29, it is likely that he won’t improve much more as player and it could be argued that an out-and-out left-back would bring more balance to the team.

As Whelan alludes to, Alioski would have to accept he plays a bit-part role, should he stay on, suggesting that he should leave and be a key man elsewhere.

In other news, Leeds have been linked with a move for a relegated Premier League player – find out who it is here.

West Ham United will make the short trip to west London to take on Chelsea this afternoon as the Hammers look to boost their chances of a top-six finish in the Premier League.

The Blues already look set to finish third in the league whilst the Irons’ fate is still uncertain with Wolves and Manchester United also in the hunt for sixth place.

David Moyes’ men will take confidence from the fact that they beat Thomas Tuchel’s side 3-2 in the reverse fixture with every remaining game now vital for the east London club.

With a crunch first leg of their Europa League semi-final against Frankfurt on Thursday, will the Scotsman prioritise Europe and look to make changes against Chelsea? Here is how Football FanCast expects the Hammers to line up.

West Ham XI: Fabianski, Johnson, Dawson, Alese, Cresswell, Soucek, Rice, Bowen, Lanzini, Benrahma, Antonio

As expected there’s no change in goal as Lukasz Fabianski continues his role as league goalkeeper whilst there’s a major change in the defence with Issa Diop now ruled out with an ankle injury.

With Craig Dawson the only fit senior centre-back, we expect Moyes to finally give an opportunity to exciting youngster Aji Alese.

The 6 foot 3 Nigerian has been excellent for the Hammers’ U23s this season and was described as “gold dust” by Tom Edwards on the We Are West Ham Podcast.

Moreover, the 21-year-old is a left-footed centre-back so should slot in next to Dawson perfectly as he gears up to make a potential Premier League debut.

Tomas Soucek and Declan Rice are set to continue their partnership in front of the back four whilst there is another change in the attacking midfield trio with Moyes playing his usual 4-2-3-1 set-up.

Nikola Vlasic was handed a rare league start against Burnley last weekend and failed to deliver once again, therefore we expect the Croatian to be replaced by Said Benrahma to add much-needed creativity to the side and support for striker Michail Antonio.

The £69k-per-week 24-year-old has endured a tough first season in claret and blue, scoring just one goal in all competitions.

Despite playing a London rival in Chelsea, this afternoon’s match is crucial if West Ham are serious about securing a top-six finish, with other sides in the hunt breathing down their neck.

AND in other news, Moyes can axe “superb” £50m ace with WHU swoop for “one of the most exciting talents”…

If you were asked to write down all of the problems with Celtic right now, you’d probably run out of paper and ink.

The Hoops have an endless supply of issues that the hierarchy and coaching staff are struggling to amend.

They can’t find a new manager and neither can they address issues at board level where they’re seeking a new director of football.

The biggest thing they need to resolve is the playing squad. The likes of Kristoffer Ajer, Odsonne Edouard and Ryan Christie to name a few have all been linked with the exit door.

Though, when it comes to addressing the team, it’s the defence they’ll need to sort out quickly.

The Bhoys conceded a grand total of 19 goals in just six Europa League outings while they have shipped 13 more than Rangers in the Premiership.

Individual errors have plagued their campaign, no more so than between the sticks.

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Scott Bain is the preferred choice at the moment but he’s not been shy of mistakes this term. Neither has Vasilis Barkas.

After Celtic failed to secure the services of Fraser Forster again, it was the Greek stopper who Nick Hammond turned to.

A fee of £4.5m was agreed with AEK Athens but he’s had a disastrous first year in Glasgow.

Like Bain, he has been guilty of poor goalkeeping, something that particularly shone through in Europe. Barkas was at fault when the Hoops were inexplicably knocked out of the Champions League in the group stages at the hands of Ferenvaros and didn’t cover himself in glory against AC Milan either.

With that in mind, signing a goalkeeper in the summer should be right at the top of their agenda.

Dundee United ‘keeper Benjamin Siegrist has been touted with a move but another name mentioned in the last few weeks is Aston Villa’s Tom Heaton.

He’s slid down the pecking order with the Premier League club after they signed Emi Martinez from Arsenal but despite that, he’d be a great addition for any new manager at Paradise.

Speaking to Football Insider, Paul Robinson said: “Tom Heaton is a possibility. Logistically, would he be willing to move to Glasgow? I’m not sure. He might be very settled with his family.

“It would be a great signing for Celtic. Heaton would be a great signing for any club. He is a top-class, reliable goalkeeper who would be perfect for Celtic next season.”

The words reliable and top-class should be music to the ears of supporters at Parkhead.

Those are two attributes that have been completely redundant when assessing the club’s goalkeepers this term.

Heaton, on the other hand, is a proven international. Standing at 6 foot 2, he knows how to command his area and like Forster who was such a hit in Glasgow, he’s capable of producing extraordinary saves.

What Celtic need is someone proven with plenty of experience and leadership skills. The 35-year-old would be that player in a nutshell.

AND in other news, Forget Howe: Desmond could revive Celtic by hiring 58 y/o Rodgers dubbed “world-class”…

Luke Hatfield, from the Express and Star doesn’t think that Daniel Podence is good enough to play for Tottenham, playing down suggestions of a reunion with Nuno Espirito Santo.

talkSPORT’s Alex Crook revealed that reports in Portugal say that the Spurs boss could be interested in bringing the 25-year-old to north London summer.

Podence has been with Wolves for just over 18 months but has struggled to get to grips with the Premier League despite some moments of quality.

Muscle injuries restricted Podence to featuring in just over half of Wolves’ league fixtures last term, although he was a starter and in Santo’s best XI for the majority of those.

However, despite impressive goals against Tottenham’s London rivals Chelsea and Arsenal, Hatfield isn’t convinced the £25m-rated winger could make the step up.

He told The Transfer Tavern:

“I think they’ve just seen Nuno is at Spurs and thought, who did Nuno have at Wolves? What do Spurs need? And we’ll just link him.

“Podence is a strange one. A lot of Wolves fans initially liked him, but he struggled with injuries. I don’t think he’s a Spurs level player when you look at the players they’ve got there already.

“You’ve got Heung Min Son, Steven Bergwijn, Lucas Moura, so he doesn’t strike me as a player that are better than those, which isn’t a shot at Daniel Podence, but I don’t think he would get in Spurs’ XI, so it doesn’t seem like a goer.”

This appears a classic case of putting two and two together.

Whilst Santo is looking at adding to his squad this summer, he’ll want to bring in players that will improve his team, and with several better wingers already at his disposal, Podence wouldn’t offer that.

An update has emerged on Nantes forward Jean-Kevin Augustin, regarding Celtic’s interest in the attacker.

What’s the talk?

According to French outlet Homme du Match, Celtic are interested in signing striker Jean-Kevin Augustin from Ligue 1 club Nantes this summer.

The report claims that the Hoops are monitoring his situation as they look at potential replacements for Odsonne Edouard, should the French forward depart before the end of the window.

Blunder on the horizon

Celtic must avoid a blunder with Augustin this summer as signing him could be a disaster.

Ange Postecoglou would be facing a nightmare if the club went ahead with a deal for the attacker as he has struggled both on and off the pitch in recent years.

His track record, both in France and in England, is dismal and there is little evidence to suggest that he would be a good signing for the Scottish giants.

Leeds were recently forced to pay £18m for the Frenchman after refusing to sign him at the end of their 2019/20 campaign, despite having an obligation to sign him due to their promotion to the Premier League. He joined the Whites on loan midway through that season and made just three substitute appearances, failing to manage a goal or assist – leading to the club opting against making him a permanent member of their squad.

The £21k-per-week flop then returned to France with Nantes and faced similar issues. He played three games in the league last season and faced criticism from his boss. Nantes manager Christian Gourcuff hit out at the forward’s fitness, claiming that it was at an unacceptable level and citing it as a reason for his lack of involvement in Ligue 1. He said:

“We have now left him out of team training so that he can reach an acceptable level of fitness. He is following an individual fitness regime this week with Cyrille Moine (fitness coach) and that will still be the case next week.

“We integrated him, but we saw that he was not at a sufficient level.”

This suggests that Augustin is not the right character for Celtic to add to their group. He is seemingly not devoted enough to keep himself in shape and he has not been able to score a goal at his past two clubs, suggesting that his talent does not outweigh his lack of professionalism.

Therefore, the Hoops must avoid him at all costs as it could be a disaster of a signing for the club if he continues the way he’s going.

AND in other news, “The kind of calibre Postecoglou wants” – Celtic journalist hails 26 y/o amid confirmed update…

Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma has reportedly requested to leave the Amex Stadium this summer, acting as a potential transfer boost to Liverpool.

The Lowdown: Bissouma catching Liverpool’s eye

The Seagulls may have struggled this season, battling with relegation throughout the campaign, but Bissouma has consistently stood out in Graham Potter’s side.

The 24-year-old has been linked with a summer move to Liverpool, being seen as a possible replacement for Gini Wijnaldum, who could leave in a few weeks’ time.

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The Latest: Bissouma hands in transfer request

According to The Times, Bissouma has asked Brighton to allow him to leave in the summer transfer window, no doubt alerting the Reds.

Both Manchester City and Arsenal are also mentioned in the report, as well as Marseille, suggesting there could be a battle for the Mali international’s signature.

It is even stated that Jurgen Klopp has ‘spent time personally researching Bissouma’s character’, such is his level of interest in the player.

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The Verdict: Liverpool should move for Bissouma

Assuming Wijnaldum does move on at the end of the season, Bissouma looks like a tailor-made replacement for the Dutchman, having been described as ‘incredible’ by former Brighton teammate Dale Stephens in the past.

He possesses a huge amount of energy in the middle of the park and the defensive side of his game stands out the most, with the Malian averaging 2.8 tackles and 1.7 interceptions per game in the league this season.

In comparison, Wijnaldum has averaged just 0.6 and 0.7 respectively, which suggests that Bissouma could offer more tenacity than the current Liverpool ace.

The Brighton midfielder is also enjoying an 87.1% pass completion rate, which is impressive considering that he is playing for a bottom half club and suggests that he could thrive in Klopp’s system if the Reds can snap him up.

In other news, some Liverpool fans have been criticising one Reds player’s performance in the 2-0 win over Southampton. Read more here.

West Ham United will soon need to find a long-term successor to Mark Noble.

The long-serving Irons skipper will retire at the end of next season, drawing the curtain down on a phenomenal 18-year career in East London, where he has racked up over 520 appearances for his boyhood club.

At the age of 34, the midfielder has found game time hard to come by in recent months, starting only eight Premier League matches during the 2020/21 season but it’s believed his influence off the pitch is just as important as on it.

Even if he’s not featuring on the pitch, he’s going to be a very hard man to replace this time next year.

And it seems like David Moyes is already planning ahead as the Hammers have been linked to several central midfielders this transfer window, including another Czech sensation in Alex Kral.

Whilst other names include Manchester City unseen gem Yangel Herrera and Israeli international Dor Peretz.

But could the Scot have the perfect heir already at the club?

According to The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas, promising academy starlet Conor Coventry ‘will be looked at’ during pre-season and whilst it’s likely he is shipped out on loan to get valuable game time, he could well return at just the right time to succeed the retiring Irons legend.

The 22-year-old dynamo has been highlighted as a player with big potential by the Daily Mail’s secret scout in the past, claiming that he is ‘forceful in the tackle with a good range of passing’ and that he isn’t afraid to get forward either.

This very much draws some similarities to Noble in his prime.

Thomas has waxed lyrical about Coventry before, too. He described him as an “exciting talent” to The Athletic’s ‘U Irons’ podcast back in October.

“Obviously, when I was at the Southend v West Ham Under-23 game, David Moyes was there – and obviously Conor Coventry scored in that match, so he’s definitely someone Moyes is aware of and I think this is one of the reasons why they allowed Josh Cullen to leave.

“They’re looking at it like, ‘hey, we’ve got someone like Josh Cullen, younger, perhaps much better in terms of career prospects. So, we’re putting all our focus on him right now.'”

Furthermore, well-known fan page West Ham Central dubbed him the “next best thing” from the academy system to the Irish Post, adding that he has “excellent composure and leadership” and is “a real old head on young shoulders.”

All of which provide further positive signs as to why he may be able to fill the void left behind by Noble next year.

One more loan spell, then it could be time to promote Coventry into the first-team full-time.

AND in other news, ExWHUemployee drops crushing transfer claim that’ll leave fans truly gutted… 

Celtic’s woes in the Europa League continued last week as they were hammered 4-0 by Bayer Leverkusen on their own turf.

This came after they lost 4-3 to Real Betis in their opening group stage match, with Ange Postecoglou’s side now facing an uphill battle to qualify for the knockout stages.

One player who has struggled in Europe in recent seasons and featured against Leverkusen is defensive midfielder Nir Bitton. In 24 minutes against the Bundesliga side, the 29-year-old lost half of his duels and won possession back once, whilst giving the ball away six times.

The Israel international has been a terrific servant for Celtic over the years. He joined from Ashdod in 2013 and has made 241 appearances for the club in the subsequent eight years, including 153 times in the Scottish Premiership for the Hoops.

A major issue he has had throughout his career in Scotland is his availability. He has been out of action for 12 different reasons since joining Celtic, ranging from the ongoing pandemic to groin injuries and problems with his knee. This has restricted him to less than 20 Premiership appearances in each campaign since the 2016/17 season.

Despite that, his value from August 2018 to January 2019 stood at a respectable £1.80m, according to Transfermarkt. Less than three years later, however, Bitton’s value now stands at £720k and has been steadily declining in the intervening period – dropping four times since January 2019.

This means that his value has plummeted by 60% in under three years, despite being in what should be the prime years of his career as a holding midfielder. It’s hardly a surprise, therefore, that he’s been dubbed a “walking joke” by popular Celtic platform, Bhoys Analytics.

His performances in the Europa League, along with his injuries, may have played a part in his valuation flopping in recent years. He averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.72 across five games in the 2019/20 edition of the competition, making one tackle and interception combined per game.

The following year, he averaged a score of 6.63 in three appearances as the overall quality of his displays lowered, despite him averaging 2.7 tackles and interceptions per match. This suggests that he was not performing to a high enough standard in the Europa League, irrespective of any accomplishments domestically, and that could hint at why his price has been falling.

He has struggled on the pitch in Europe and off the pitch in terms of his availability and there are no signs to suggest he is on the way back up. Could it be time for Celtic to part ways with the midfielder?

AND in other news, Postecoglou provides fresh injury update that should excite Celtic supporters…

An update has emerged on Rangers boss Steven Gerrard, regarding his thoughts on Newcastle… 

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, Rangers manager Steven Gerrard has become interested in the developments at Newcastle this week, following the takeover by PIF on Thursday.

The report claims that it is expected that this season is Gerrard’s last with Rangers in the Scottish Premiership, opening up the door for him to come to Tyneside.

Get it done

With Steve Bruce set to be axed by PIF, the new owners will be on the lookout for a new head coach in the coming days/weeks. It will likely be their first major decision, in terms of influencing the future of the club, as owners and fans will be hoping that they can bring in a top manager to lead them up the table under this fresh regime.

They could win the supporters over instantly by making the call to appoint Gerrard as Bruce’s successor. If the report from the Daily Mail is to be believed, the ex-Liverpool man could be keen on the opportunity to come and manage at St. James’ Park and PIF must take advantage of this situation by approaching Rangers to get a deal done.

PIF could attempt to poach a big-name like Jose Mourinho or Antonio Conte, but a measured approach with a long-term plan in place could appeal more to supporters in comparison to aimlessly chucking money about and hoping something sticks. Therefore, Gerrard could be the perfect candidate as he has an excellent track record in his career so far and is still in the early throes of his managerial career at the age of 41.

Former England international Glen Johnson lauded Gerrard’s work at Rangers and claimed that he has an ‘amazing’ reputation. He said:

“Just because you’re a world-class player, it doesn’t mean you’re going to be a world-class manager. So the fact he’s learned the game from the other side, he’s been confident in what he believes in, he’s got a good backroom team around him.

“So he’s done a fantastic job and I can’t think of any better young managers at the moment. He is Mr Liverpool. His reputation is amazing and rightfully so.”

Gerrard has won 2.15 points per game across 185 matches in charge of Rangers, winning the Scottish Premiership ahead of Celtic last term. His Gers side ended the campaign with 102 points and 13 goals conceded, along with 92 scored, as they went unbeaten.

This shows that he can set up a side to be solid defensively whilst still maintaining attacking threat, which ultimately leads to winning football matches. He has proven himself to be a promising young managerial gem and Newcastle fans could enjoy seeing a rookie, so to speak, bring fresh ideas to the club after years of mediocrity in the top-flight.

Therefore, PIF could get the fans onside instantly by appointing an exciting, well-respected, head coach in Steven Gerrard and that is why they must pursue a deal for him to take over from Bruce.

AND in other news, Craig Hope drops fresh £8m Newcastle manager claim that’ll surely delight supporters…

West Brom have reportedly agreed new contracts with Owen Windsor, Toby King and Zak Delaney, according to The Express and Star’s Joseph Masi. 

What’s the story?

West Brom would have been facing a nervy couple of months, as they looked to tie down some of their younger players to new contracts ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.

Windsor, King and Delaney have all played their part for the club’s academy teams in recent seasons, and it appears as though they’ve made a good impression on key members of staff at the Hawthorns.

All of the players were out of contract at the end of the 2020/21 season, and the club have now reportedly agreed new deals with the trio, and it’ll be interesting to see what the future has in store for them in the coming months.

It will have been a no-brainer for the Baggies

It’ll be pleasing to see for West Brom’s supporters to see them tie down some of their upcoming talents to new contracts, as they could potentially have an important role to play with the senior side in the near future.

The Baggies endured a frustrating league campaign last term, as they were relegated from the Premier League, whilst under the management of Sam Allardyce.

But West Brom will fancy their chances of winning promotion back into the top-flight at the first time of asking, under the watchful eye of newly-appointed boss Valerien Ismael, who opted to leave Barnsley in favour of a move to the Hawthorns this summer.

In previous seasons, we saw some of West Brom’s promising young talents given a chance to feature in the senior squad, with the likes of Jonathan Leko and Rekeem Harper being just some of those to play a part for the club over the years.

With Ismael showing that he’s willing to give younger players a chance whilst at Barnsley, you’d be foolish to rule out the newly-appointed West Brom boss doing exactly the same whilst with the Baggies this term.

Even if they’re not to be a regular starters this season, King, Delaney and Windsor will all fancy their chances of forcing their way into Ismael’s plans in the coming months, and it will have been a no-brainer for West Brom to offer the trio new deals this summer.

It’s exactly why fans will be buzzing with Masi’s latest news.