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Over the past few years, Leeds United have enjoyed a great deal of success in bringing exciting youth prospects into Thorp Arch in the transfer market, before unleashing the most talented of these players in their first-team squad.

Indeed, the likes of Joe Gelhardt, Sam Greenwood, Crysencio Summerville, Illan Meslier and Pascal Struijk have all made the move to Elland Road in recent seasons, before going on to establish themselves as regulars in Jesse Marsch’s senior side.

However, while there has been a great deal of fanfare regarding the first four of these aforementioned starlets, one player whose development at Elland Road has perhaps been overlooked somewhat is that of 23-year-old defender Struijk.

Upon joining Leeds from the Ajax academy back in January of 2018, The Express ran a report which highlighted the Whites supporters’ unhappiness with the former Netherlands U17 international’s signing – with many stating their belief that Victor Orta should have been focusing his attention on improvements to the first team, rather than signing youth prospects.

Now four-and-a-half-years on from his arrival, you would be hard pressed to find a supporter of the belief that the centre-back’s signing was a bad one by the Spanish director of football, as Struijk is now very much a key part of the Whites’ starting XI.

The defender first started to catch the eye over his 27 Premier League appearances back in 2020/21, a campaign in which the £16.2m-rated talent helped his side keep seven clean sheets and scored one goal, as well as made an average of 1.8 tackles, 1.7 interceptions, 3.1 clearances, 41.3 passes, 2.3 long balls and won 3.9 duels – at a success rate of 53% – per game.

These metrics not only saw the Dutchman average an extremely impressive SofaScore match rating of 6.94 that season – ranking him as the club’s joint 10th-best performer in the league – but also demonstrate both the 23-year-old’s solidity when defending and his ability to play the ball out from the back.

Furthermore, club captain Liam Cooper quite clearly believes that Struijk has an extremely bright future ahead of him in the game, with the 31-year-old stating of his teammate back in February this year:

“Pascal has absolutely everything to be one of the best centre-backs out there, he really has. He’s unbelievable on the ball, he’s strong, good in the air. I always knew. We all know now. His improvement speaks for itself.”

This season, the youngster’s impressive positional versatility – being able to operate from centre-back, left-back and defensive midfield – has already proven useful for Jesse Marsch, who has deployed the former Ajax starlet on the left of his back four in each of the Whites’ six Premier League fixtures in 2021/22 – as a result of Junior Firpo and Stuart Dallas’ respective injuries.

As such, while the cost of Struijk’s signing was never officially released, considering his age and the fact that Ajax appeared more than happy to part with the youngster, it can be reasonably assumed that the transfer did not break the bank for the Whites – leading us to believe that Orta very much hit the jackpot when landing the £7k-per-week sensation back in 2018.

Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth has provided an update on Brendan Rodgers’ future at Leicester City.

The Lowdown: International break rumours

The Foxes headed into the international break rock bottom of the Premier League with six defeats from seven.

A 6-2 defeat to Spurs led to speculation of Rodgers being sacked during the international break, with Fabrizio Romano stating there would be internal discussions at The King Power Stadium.

As we know, Rodgers is still in charge, with reports suggesting that it could cost the club £10m in compensation to part ways with the Northern Irishman.

The Latest: Sheth’s comments

Talking to GiveMeSport, Sheth said he’s been ‘told’ by a ‘source’ that it will actually be ‘very difficult’ for the club to part ways with Rodgers due to their ‘financial issues’.

“One source has told me that it will be very difficult to actually sack Brendan Rodgers anyway because Leicester have got a lot of financial issues, which Brendan Rodgers even alluded to during the transfer window.

“We all know what happened with Leicester during the transfer window as well. Even though they brought in so much money by selling Wesley Fofana and getting Kasper Schmeichel’s wages off the bill, they only brought in one outfield player for a cost of around £12-15million. It was a really, really quiet transfer window as far as Leicester are concerned.”

The Verdict: Final life?

The Foxes only recently escaped sanctions from UEFA regarding financial fair play, so their off-field worries may have saved Rodgers’ job.

However, if there are no immediate improvements, then the club may decide to pull the plug no matter what the cost, leaving Rodgers on his final life.

The likes of Sean Dyche, Thomas Frank and Rafael Benitez have all been linked as possible Rodgers replacements, but it seems as if he’ll be in the dugout against Nottingham Forest next Monday.

Newcastle United have had a mixed start to the 2022/23 Premier League campaign as Eddie Howe’s side currently sit 11th in the table after six matches played.

The Magpies have only won one of their games this season but have also lost only once, with four draws taking them to seven points as it stands.

One of their standout performers in the top-flight so far has been Brazilian central midfielder Joelinton. The enforcer has averaged a superb SofaScore rating of 7.23, making 4.5 tackles and interceptions per game.

This comes after he averaged 3.1 tackles and interceptions per match in the 2021/22 campaign. He was converted into a midfielder midway through the season by Howe, after struggling whilst playing out wide or as a striker, and has been a machine in the middle of the park ever since.

Newcastle could now land their next Joelinton by securing a January deal to sign Vasco de Gama midfielder Andrey Santos, who is a reported target for the club ahead of the next transfer window.

The Brazilian outfit are said to be demanding a fee in the region of £30m for the teenager and that the Magpies may be willing to meet that price tag heading into the second half of the campaign.

Santos is a defensive-minded battler in the middle of the park, like Newcastle’s Joelinton, and has shown great promise in his short career to date. In Serie B in 2022, the 18-year-old has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.17 across 24 appearances – making 3.7 tackles and interceptions per match.

The gem has won 60% of his individual duels, showing that he is not bullied by experienced professionals in spite of his age, and has also chipped in with five goals.

He would also suit Howe’s style of play at St. James’ Park. The Toon boss wants his team to press aggressively and high up the pitch and football talent scout Jacek Kulig described him as a “pressing machine”, whilst also dubbing him a “fantastic” talent.

This suggests that he is capable of operating effectively in that position for the Magpies as his style suits the way that Howe wants his side to play out of possession.

Joelinton is a similar player in the sense that he also excels at this part of the game. Journalist Chris Waugh stated that he “was everywhere” against Manchester United earlier this year and Mark Douglas named him as one of the Newcastle players who made the team’s pressing a “joy to watch”.

Therefore, Dan Ashworth and Howe could unearth their next tough-tackling, high-intensity, Brazilian presser in midfield by signing Santos in January.

Newcastle United have entered the final week of the summer transfer window and time is running out for them to finish their business.

Dan Ashworth recently smashed the club’s transfer record to bring in Swedish striker Alexander Isak from Real Sociedad, making him the fourth arrival on Tyneside.

Nick Pope, Sven Botman, and Matt Targett have also joined the Magpies on permanent deals from Burnley, Lille, and Aston Villa respectively.

The ex-Brighton chief now has until Thursday to make any further additions to Eddie Howe’s squad and one area in which they may look to strengthen in is the middle of the park.

ESPN recently reported that the club are one of the teams interested in signing midfielder Matt O’Riley from Scottish giants Celtic, who could be available if a bid of up to £20m is lodged.

Newcastle must now push to sign the Denmark U21 international before the deadline passes as he could form an exciting pairing with Bruno Guimaraes in midfield.

First and foremost, would the 21-year-old suit the way Howe wants his team to play? It has been noted that being able to counter-press by reading the game is one of his skills and this suggests that he would fit in with the manager’s aggressive pressing system.

This shows that O’Riley is capable of pushing on from midfield to engage in a high press and this could help the Magpies to force mistakes in the opposition third.

He also has the quality to be a creator for his team. Former Hoops boss Paul Lambert previously heaped praise on the midfielder’s ability in possession, saying:

“The space he can generate for himself is really good, and he makes the game look easy by doing the simple things well. That’s not always an easy thing to say to footballers, to just keep it simple, they want to do the flashy side of the game. But he does the simple side of the game really well.”

In the Premiership this season, the ex-MK Dons machine has created three chances per game and assisted three across five appearances. This comes after he provided 2.2 key passes per outing in the Scottish top-flight last term and ended the campaign with four goals and three assists in 16 matches, whereas no Toon player managed more than 1.6 key passes per game in 2021/22.

The young talent has the potential to be a creative force in the Magpies midfield and Brazilian dynamo Bruno Guimaraes could benefit from that.

In the 2021/22 Premier League campaign, the Brazil international scored five goals in 11 starts and having a player alongside him who is capable of consistently creating opportunities could allow him to add to his Toon goal tally.

The ex-Lyon man has also shown that he can be a creator. In the last 365 days, Guimaraes ranks in the 96th percentile out of players in his position in Europe’s top five leagues for expected goals assisted at 0.19 per 90, which suggests that he is one of the best midfielders around when it comes to creating high-quality chances.

Now, imagine him and O’Riley playing alongside each other in the English top-flight and ripping teams open with their terrific ability on the ball.

Tottenham Hotspur are in talks over a potential deal to sign Yannick Carrasco before the transfer deadline on Thursday night…

What’s the word?

That’s according to the Telegraph’s chief football correspondent Jason Burt, who claims that Spurs manager Antonio Conte has long admired the Belgian international and is attempting to strike a deal before the end of the summer window.

It’s also believed the Lilywhites tried to sign the 28-year-old from Atletico Madrid on deadline day in January but the LaLiga outfit were unwilling to sell him at that point.

Carrasco has a release clause in the region of £51.2m but last time, the Spaniards were looking for around £25m to let him leave and the player has made no secret of his desire to one day play in the Premier League.

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Perisic 2.0

Interestingly, the report goes on to state that the 6 foot 1 dynamo would be utilised as a right wing-back as further competition for the divisive Emerson Royal; someone who Conte was reportedly not keen on earlier this year, as per The Times.

In Carrasco, a winger by trade, the Italian could well be seeing his next Ivan Perisic, who under his stewardship went from being a winger all his career to a wing-back at Inter Milan – and now the pair have reunited in north London with the Croatian still acting as his first-choice left wing-back.

The Belgium star is a hugely versatile talent as shown by the five different roles he played for Atletico last season.

Across 44 appearances, he was deployed on both flanks – both as a wing-back and as a natural winger – as well as upfront as a striker. He delivered six goals and seven assists, per Transfermarkt.

FBref even liken his statistical profile to that of Perisic, so it’s easy to see why Conte would be ever so keen to land him in a late move this week.

When compared to other wing-backs across Europe, the £42.5m-rated wizard ranks within the top 2% for non-penalty goals (0.14), the top 2% for shot-creating actions (3.76) and the top 1% for touches in the opposition’s box (5.39) per 90.

That clearly highlights his ability to get on the ball and cause havoc in the final third, something that Conte wants to see from his wing-backs and something that is perhaps lacking in Emerson, who has managed just three goal contributions in his 45 appearances for Spurs.

Carrasco, who was once described as a “complete player” by his manager Diego Simeone, is also more than capable in his defensive duties, having averaged two tackles and one clearance per game in 2022/23 so far, via WhoScored, so he could well be the perfect complement to Perisic at Hotspur Way.

As such, sporting director Fabio Paratici must look to get this late swoop over the line before the 11pm deadline on Thursday.

The Perisic-like Carrasco and the Croatian himself would be a mouth-watering and rather attacking wing-back pairing in the English top-flight. Conte wants him, so the Italian supremo has to now deliver.

AND in other news, Paratici could undo Spurs’ summer business in “shock” move for £30m “headless chicken”…

Glasgow Rangers secured their place in the group stages of the Champions League with a 1-0 win away from Ibrox on Wednesday night.

The Gers came into the match after drawing 2-2 in the first leg at home against PSV. Antonio Colak and Tom Lawrence scored the goals that night to tee up this clash.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men travelled to the Netherlands and battled hard to earn a 1-0 win against the Eredivise outfit, putting themselves through to the Champions League proper for the first time in 12 years.

Colak scored the only goal of the match as he was perfectly placed to finish after terrific work from Malik Tillman to win the ball back inside the box and tee him up for the shot.

Whilst the Croatian, who has now scored five goals in his first eight games for Rangers, was the match-winner on the pitch, it was a defender who was the real star of the show for the Light Blues – James Sands.

The versatile USA international has been forced into regular minutes at centre-back this season due to injuries to Ben Davies and John Souttar and was sublime against PSV.

Journalist Jacob Schneider dubbed his performance as “phenomenal” and claimed that he was “influential” at the back, whilst fellow reporter Kyle Bonn described him as a “rock”.

The 6ft 1 centre-back, who was once called a “monster” by New York City FC writer Oliver Strand, was composed on the ball for the majority of the match – completing 86% of his attempted passes.

His ability, naturally as a midfielder, to play the ball out from the back with ease allowed Rangers to break the press at times and it meant that he was not slowing any moves down by struggling in possession.

Off the ball, he was a machine as he racked up six clearances, one block, two interceptions and one tackle, whilst the two PSV centre-backs managed nine of those actions between them.

Along with that, he won two of his three ground duels and this shows that he was strong on the deck and did not allow himself to be bullied, whilst his 70 touches – the second-most of any Gers starter – further highlighted his influence in playing out from the back, as per SofaScore.

The Scotsman’s Mark Atkinson dubbed him the best outfielder on the pitch and we agree. He was key for Rangers defensively and on the ball and will now be hoping to cement his place in the team for the rest of the campaign.

Leeds United are one of the clubs in the race to bring Goncalo Ramos to the Premier League this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Portuguese publication Record (16/08: page 33), who claim that Newcastle United are now preparing a €40m (£33.5m) offer for the Benfica centre-forward in order to fend off competition from Leeds, Everton, Southampton and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

This would appear to support an earlier report last week by 90min, who claimed that both Newcastle and Nottingham Forest had held talks with the Liga Portugal side regarding a deal for the 21-year-old, while the Whites, Crystal Palace, West Ham United and Paris Saint-Germain were also mentioned as interested parties.

De Ketelaere alternative

While missing out on the €36m (£30.5m) signing of Charles De Ketelaere earlier this summer will have undoubtedly come as a gutting blow to Victor Orta and Jesse Marsch – with the Whites being heavily linked with a move for the 21-year-old forward – it would very much appear as if Ramos would represent something of a dream alternative to the Belgium international.

Indeed, it is undeniable that the player who scored 18 goals and registered 10 assists over 49 appearances for Club Brugge KV last season – as well as being a talent billed as the “heir to Kevin de Bruyne’s throne” – would have made an exceptional addition at Elland Road this season, with De Ketelaere joining AC Milan, Orta must turn his focus in the market elsewhere.

And, considering just how much raw potential Ramos very much appears to possess, the Benfica starlet would look to be a fantastic alternative target for the Spanish director of football to pursue prior to September’s transfer deadline.

Indeed, over his 29 Liga Portugal appearances – only 17 of which came as starts – last season, the £12.6m-rated forward scored seven goals, registered two assists and created three big chances for his teammates, in addition to taking an average of 1.9 shots, making 0.8 key passes and completing 0.8 dribbles per game.

Furthermore, the £8.2k-per-week striker also missed a further 12 big chances of his own last time out, a statistic that, while usually perceived as a negative, proves just how often Ramos gets himself to goalscoring positions over the course of a 90 minutes – while the 21-year-old’s composure in front of goal will only likely improve with confidence and age.

This is something that has already been evident so far in Benfica’s 2022/23 campaign, with the player who Football Talent Scout Jacek Kulig claimed is “simply too good” having already bagged four goals and provided three assists over four Champions League and Liga Portugal fixtures – averaging a direct goal contribution every 40 minutes of football played this season.

As such, should Ramos be able to keep up this quite extraordinary level of performance in the final third following a potential switch to Elland Road this summer, a £33.5m fee for the 21-year-old could quite easily look a bargain for the Whites – leading us to believe that Orta simply must do all he can to land the Portugal international as his De Ketelaere alternative.

West Ham United could be interested in a move to bring Christian Pulisic to the London Stadium this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to ExWHUemployee, who revealed in a recent post on The West Ham Way (via West Ham Zone) that, with the 23-year-old forward reported to be free to leave Chelsea prior to September’s transfer deadline, David Moyes would be interested in making a move to bring the USA international across to east London in the coming weeks.

However, the Hammers insider went on to suggest that, with the Blues having been very difficult to deal with in the transfer market so far this summer, whether or not Moyes will be successful in his attempts to lure the former Borussia Dortmund talent to the London Stadium remains up in the air at present.

Dream Vlasic replacement

With Nikola Vlasic looking set to end his turbulent year-long spell at West Ham via a loan switch – which includes a €15m (£12.5m) option to buy – to Serie A Torino, it would not be surprising to see Moyes enter the market for a new versatile attacker over the remainder of the summer transfer window.

And, while Pulisic – who can operate on either wing and through the middle – has not exactly set the world alight following his £58m move to Stamford Bridge back in January of 2019, the 23-year-old has shown signs that he could represent something of a dream replacement for the outbound Croatia international.

Indeed, over his 22 Premier League appearances – only 13 of which came as starts – last season, the £37.8m-rated talent scored six goals, registered two assists and created one big chance for his teammates, in addition to taking an average of 1.3 shots, making 0.7 key passes and completing 1.1 dribbles per game.

For comparison, over Vlasic’s 19 league fixtures in 2021/22, the £19.8m-rated forward scored just one goal, provided no assists and created no big chances, as well as taking an average of 0.4 shots, making 0.5 key passes and completing 0.5 dribbles per outing.

As such, it is clear to see that the £150k-per-week forward who Hakim Ziyech dubbed “crazy” would be quite a considerable upgrade upon the £69k-per-week Vlasic, leading us to believe that, should there be a chance of Moyes landing the 50-cap international this summer, he must do all he can to take it.

According to The Telegraph journalist Mike McGrath, Southampton have received an approach from an unnamed Premier League side for striker Che Adams.

The Lowdown: Saints ready to sanction exit

The 26-year-old still has two years remaining on his deal at the St. Mary’s Stadium, but it’s recently been reported that the Saints are willing to listen to offers for him this summer, with a switch away from the south coast now looking possible.

Several clubs, including Leeds United and Nottingham Forest, are believed to be interested in securing the forward’s signature this window, and after a fresh update, it sounds like someone has already made the first official move.

The Latest: Southampton receive approach

Taking to Twitter, McGrath confirmed that Southampton have been the recipient of an enquiry for Adams, though it’s yet unknown as to who that might be. He wrote:

“Southampton have received approach for Che Adams from a Premier League club. Interest in the Scotland striker from a number of teams. Nottingham Forest among those looking at him but there are others.”

The Verdict: The Mara effect

Ralph Hasenhuttl has recently signed French striker Sekou Mara from Bordeaux, and whilst he’s entitled to want cover and competition up top, you would imagine that this only pushes Adams even closer to the exit door.

The Scottish international only made 23 PL starts for the Saints last season, suggesting that the Austrian doesn’t see him as a major part of his long-term plans, especially considering the club are now seemingly open to sanctioning his departure.

Kyle Walker-Peters is another player whose name has recently been linked with an exit, so Southampton will have to decide if they are willing to lose two of their first-team players in one go.

Rangers winger Ryan Kent has the potential to be a ‘game changer’ for Aston Villa if he joins them this summer, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Kent shines for Rangers

The 25-year-old has shone in Scotland since making the move to Ibrox in 2019, scoring 3o goals and registering 49 assists in 175 appearances overall.

Kent has been linked with a return south of the border throughout the summer transfer window, with Villa one of the clubs who are eyeing him up, being deemed in some quarters as the favourites to land him.

it appears that more attacking reinforcements are needed at Villa Park, especially after Saturday’s 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth in their Premier League opener.

The Latest: Kent could be a ‘game changer’ for Villa

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke talked up the idea of Steven Gerrard signing his former player this summer.

The journalist claimed:

“I think we saw the best of Ryan Kent under Steven Gerrard and I’m sure Gerrard would be confident that he would get the best out of Kent as well if he was able to bring them to Aston Villa.

“He’s a potential game changer, Ryan Kent, on his day, a really skilful, tricky winger who can score goals, create goals as well. So I’m sure it’d be a signing that would excite the fans as well with this style of play. I think it could be a win-win situation.”

The Verdict: Perfect match

While Kent remains unproven in the Premier League, he has the potential to be an exciting signing for Villa if they move for him, especially with Gerrard knowing him so well after their time together at Rangers.

The ex-Liverpool forward would bring pace, trickery and end product in wide areas, something which has been lacking at Aston Villa. Incredibly, none of their natural wingers scored more than once in the league last season.

Kent would offer something different to a Villa team already under pressure after a dreadful result on Saturday, with the 25-year-old giving the Midlanders a fresh impetus in the final third.

Therefore, he and Villa could be a perfect match, especially under a manager who the player already knows well.