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Kevin Phillips expects Leeds United to pursue Glasgow Rangers winger Ryan Kent once again this summer.

Phillips expects Leeds pursuit

The English Premier League outfit were heavily interested in Kent last year, with the Gers even turning down a £10m bid from the Whites for Kent (rte.ie).

Speaking to Football Insider, Phillips expects Steven Gerrard to have a big job on his hands to keep the 24-year-old in Scotland. The ex-Sunderland striker said:

“I think there will be a few teams sniffing around a few of the Rangers players.

“It’s just natural. How many times have we seen it over the years? If you go up there and do well then your next move is to the Premier League.

“Ryan Kent, Leeds have obviously been linked with him and made moves for him before. He’s a Scottish champion now so why would Leeds not look at it again?

“He’s certainly a player that a lot of Premier League teams will be looking at. The big job for Stevie G is to convince him to stay and go again.”

Tough ask

Valued at £7.2m by Transfermarkt, Kent has been an ever-present for Rangers so far this season. He has played in all 33 of their Premiership matches and has scored 11 times and provided 13 assists in all competitions (Transfermarkt). He has grown into a player Gerrard can rely upon, and with Champions League football potentially on the cards for the 55-time Scottish champions, Kent may believe his work is not yet done at Ibrox.

However, the Premier League may seem a far more attractive proposition than the Scottish Premiership. At Leeds, Kent would have the chance to work with one of the most renowned managers in the world in Marcelo Bielsa, and he could well receive a far bigger salary to boot. As Phillips says, Gerrard could have his work cut out to hold on to the winger.

In other news, some Rangers fans hammered this man’s performance against Celtic.

Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay is set to miss the Premier League clash with Chelsea this afternoon with a knock.

McTominay limped off during United’s 4-0 Europa League win over Real Sociedad, adding to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s ever-growing injury list.

What’s the word?

Solskjaer has subsequently confirmed that McTominay remains sidelined with a minor knock and will once again play no part in United’s trip to Chelsea in what will be a massive injury blow for the Red Devils, having missed the goalless draw with Sociedad at Old Trafford.

However, it wasn’t all bad news, as Solskjaer expects Donny van de Beek to back in time for their trip to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Speaking in his post-match press conference after the game against Real Sociedad, Solskjaer said: “Donny trained today and he felt okay after training so hopefully [there is] no reaction.”

“So he should be with us. It was just a tweak [for Dan]. I need to give him until Saturday or even Sunday so, hopefully, he can shake it off, but I’m not sure.

“They [Pogba and McTominay] are out. They’ve not trained, Edinson hasn’t trained yet, so I wouldn’t be too optimistic about that, but miracles can happen.”

Significant blow for Solskjaer

Given that Solskjaer previously expressed hope that McTominay could be available to play against the Blues, he may have been left feeling a little aggrieved that he will be without a player who has been tipped as the next captain to take over from Harry Maguire.

Of course, with McTominay nursing a lingering issue, it’s easy to understand why the the club legend is being so cautious, as it’s unlikely he will want to aggravate the existing problem in the midst of a busy schedule.

But that will be no small consolation to the Norwegian manager, who will once again be without one of his key men when the Red Devils make the trip to Stamford Bridge this afternoon.

United have drawn one and lost one of the last three games that McTominay has missed, while Gary Neville has stressed the importance of the Scottish international.

He said: “He is emerging and growing.

“He’s someone Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] can rely upon in the big games with Fred and Fernandes in front of them. Then Pogba, Matic and Van de Beek fit in around that.”

The 24-year-old – who is currently valued at £22.5m via Transfermarkt – has been one of the standout performers under Solskjaer, making over 80 appearances across all competitions for the manager, and has continued to grow and develop as a player under his guidance. He has scored seven goals, recording a further assist, across 32 appearances in all competitions so far this season.

Give United’s mounting injury crisis in the midfield, the ongoing situation will be giving Solskjaer a major headache. There’s no doubt the United boss will be concerned about how he is going to cope without the services of one of his star midfielders.

AND in other news, Man Utd considering Jesse Lingard swap-deal for West Ham’s Declan Rice…

According to a West Ham United source, speaking to Football Insider, GSB and the club are stepping up their plans to tie down midfield star Tomas Soucek after an impressive campaign – with the Hammers ‘set’ to offer him a new and improved deal which includes a ‘significant’ salary increase.

Soucek, who has started every single Premier League game under manager David Moyes since signing permanently from Slavia Prague last summer, is apparently garnering more and more interest due to his performances.

West Ham plan new Soucek deal

Indeed, the Czech Republic colossus has a ‘growing army of admirers’ as per this report, with GSB and West Ham allegedly now stepping up their plan to offer Soucek a bumper new deal.

His current contract entitles him to around £40,000-£50,000-per-week, but the mooted fresh proposal will increase this take home significantly.

As this exciting claim emerges that West Ham are plotting a new deal for Soucek, who has debatably been their player of the season, Irons supporters will surely be encouraged by their club’s efforts to keep hold of him.

Transfer Tavern take

Despite his role as a defensive midfield player, the 26-year-old has topped the Hammers scoring charts above the likes of Michail Antonio – all while proving to be one of the most aerially dominant men in the Premier League.

According to WhoScored, Soucek has averaged an impressive 5.7 aerial duels won per 90 – the second best number in England’s top flight just behind Sheffield United striker Oliver McBurnie.

A fan favourite at the London Stadium, in good company with the likes of Antonio and Declan Rice, time will tell if this proposed new deal comes to fruition – but it’s certainly a promising claim.

In other news: West Ham fans flocked to this ExWHUemployee claim, find out more here.

Everton slipped up in the previous transfer window by allowing Theo Walcott to join Southampton on loan until the end of the season.

The 31-year-old returned to his boyhood side late in the summer market after the Toffees failed to secure a permanent deal, having shopped Walcott around as part of a vast clear out at Goodison Park to recoup some cash from their spending spree.

Walcott had only moved to Merseyside two-and-a-half years prior in a deal worth in excess of £20m, but had been deemed surplus to requirements by Carlo Ancelotti as he entered the final year of his £100,000-per-week contract.

Everton’s inability to find suitors willing to purchase the £9m-rated winger ultimately opened the door for his homecoming at St. Mary’s, where Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side are only on the hook for half of Walcott’s wages.

Trevor Sinclair has recently revealed he was surprised by Everton’s decision to allow Walcott to join Southampton until the end of the season, at which point he will be a free agent, as the former Arsenal forward had become a real attacking threat again.

“I think they [Southampton] have strengthened as well bringing in Theo,” Sinclair told talkSPORT. “He was a breath of fresh air.

“For me, I was surprised that Everton let him go because I have been to Everton and Goodison a few times where Theo has looked really on it and looks like he is happy and enjoying his football.

“Definitely over any kind of injuries, so yes he was a real threat.”

Walcott has scored two goals and provided two assists in 13 Premier League games for Southampton this season, while starting all of his appearances and only sitting out the Saints’ 2-0 win over Everton last October.

His presence has not entirely been missed at Goodison Park with Alex Iwobi stepping up to the challenge of deputising for James Rodriguez whilst the Colombian was out injured, with the Nigerian delivering some of his best Everton performances to date.

But it can now be considered a blunder by Everton’s Director of Football Marcel Brands to allow Walcott to join Southampton until his contract expires in the summer, as the former England international’s form will no doubt have attracted suitors this year.

Everton are now simply paying Walcott to put his services in the shop window ahead of becoming a free agent, which may not last for long with Hasenhuttl already confirming that he sees no reason why Southampton should not strive to finalise a long-term contract.

“I am very happy that he is comfortable here now and that he is happy to play for us and there is no reason why we should not think about keeping him longer here,” he said, via quotes by the Daily Mail, last month.

The Saints would certainly be wise to lock up a player that has become such a key weapon in Hasenhuttl’s armoury, with Danny Ings (2.1) and Che Adams (1.7) the only Southampton players offering more shots per Premier League game than the Everton-owned forward (1.6), per WhoScored.

Only James Ward-Prowse (1.6) and Adams (1.1) are providing more key passes than Walcott (0.9), too, while the 31-year-old – who ranks first at St. Mary’s for attempted dribbles (2.9) – further delivers 1.8 crosses a game, as the Saints march on in hopes of qualifying for Europe.

Everton, for whom Walcott would rank fourth for shots and fifth for key balls, may now be regretting their decision to allow the forward’s loan deal to go through and wave goodbye to any hopes of recouping anything of the fee paid to Arsenal at the start of 2018.

AND in other news, Everton must end the 14-year club association of a player completely frozen out by Carlo Ancelotti…

Aston Villa beat Arsenal last weekend but a moment which might not have sat right with Dean Smith was Ross Barkley lashing out when he was taken off. Andy Gray was fuming at the player following his actions.

What Gray had to say about Barkley

The reaction was not appreciated by Gray, who believes Barkley’s actions could see him not start against Brighton on Saturday. He said: “He’s been given a great opportunity, [he] never got a kick at Chelsea. You can be disappointed but don’t go kicking stuff, especially when the coach sees you. It’ll be interesting to see if the coach plays him in the next game. It’ll be really interesting to see if he plays in the next game.

“It was poor, really poor. What’s he doing [before joining Villa on loan], sitting in the reserves at Chelsea doing nothing, sitting on the bench twiddling his thumbs.“He gets a chance at a fantastic club, and I mean that, he’s gone to a brilliant club who are doing really well, to get his career back on track again, and that’s not going to help him.”It’s a big season for BarkleyThe summer loan signing has had a good campaign as he has managed 2.4 shots, two key passes and 1.5 successful dribbles per game (WhoScored). He has also scored three goals and provided one assist.With Barkley being on loan and an outcast at Chelsea before leaving, he needs to be playing a lot better if he wants to avoid an uncertain future. If he plays well at Villa, then he could manage to get a permanent transfer to the club or even secure a place at Chelsea. The former could be ideal as the Villans are currently battling for Europe.There is also the matter of the Euros in the summer, and poor instances like this will not get him selected in Gareth Southgate’s squad.The stats from Saturday’s game show that it was definitely not his best performance as he only managed 41 touches before he was substituted in the 77th minute. He also lost possession 12 times and lost three ground duels and two aerial duels (SofaScore).Therefore, it is understandable to see him frustrated so Dean Smith will presumably not be too worried or annoyed that his player is showing emotion. It simply shows his passion to play.