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Leeds United now look as though they could fail in their bid to bring Hwang Hee-chan to Elland Road this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by TEAMtalk, who claim that, following Phil Hay’s claim in his latest article for The Athletic that Jesse Marsch is interested in Hwang’s signing but not at an inflated fee, Victor Orta would be willing to pay up to £20m in order to prise the winger away from Wolverhampton Wanderers over the remainder of the summer transfer window.

However, with reports suggesting that Bruno Lage’s side would be looking for a figure in the region of £25m in order to sanction the South Korean’s sale, coupled with the Portuguese manager recently stating his desire to keep the 26-year-old at Molineux beyond Thursday’s transfer deadline, the chances of Leeds signing Hwang would not appear overly positive.

A blow for Marsch

While it is true that Leeds have not exactly struggled for goals so far this season, with the Whites having already found the back of the net 10 times over their five fixtures in 2022/23, with both Patrick Bamford and Joe Gelhardt already struggling with injuries this term, it is not difficult to understand why Marsch would like to bring a new forward to the club in the coming days.

Indeed, with Bamford managing just seven starts in the Premier League last season due to a series of knocks, Marsch was often left with no choice but to field winger Daniel James through the middle – a situation which, considering the Welshman’s returns of just four league goals, is evidently a circumstance the American manager would like to avoid as much as possible this time out.

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And, considering the fact the 48-year-old coach already has a relationship with Hwang, coupled with the fact the forward can operate on either wing and as a centre-forward, it would very much appear as if the Korean would be a player Marsch would welcome with open arms at Elland Road prior to Thursday’s transfer deadline.

Indeed, the £14.4m-rated forward was one of Marsch’s stars during his time in charge at Red Bull Salzburg, scoring 16 goals and registering 24 assists over 43 appearances for the Austrian Bundesliga side – with the 26-year-old averaging a rather remarkable direct goal contribution for every 66 minutes of football played under the American.

As such, should Marsch believe that he can help the £19k-per-week talent who Erling Haaland dubbed “crazy” and Peter Zeidler labelled “brutal” refind this level of form after a somewhat disappointing campaign with Wolves – scoring five goals in 30 league appearances – the 47-cap international would very much appear to be a dream signing for the 48-year-old coach.

However, with Lage appearing intent to keep hold of the Korean, coupled with Orta only being willing to offer £20m for the 26-year-old – £5m short of Wolves’ reported asking price – it would seem, at present, as if Hwang linking up with Marsch once more at Leeds looks unlikely – an outcome that would certainly come as a huge blow to the former Salzburg manager.

Leeds United could revisit their interest in Philadelphia Union star Kai Wagner in the January transfer window, journalist Graham Smyth reports.

The Lowdown: Leeds linked with Wagner move

The Whites enjoyed a good summer transfer window, bringing in a host of key names that helped make up for the loss of Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha.

One player who was linked with a move to Elland Road was Wagner, who has caught the eye with his performances for Philadelphia Union in the MLS, registering 18 assists from left-back.

A new update suggests that Leeds’ interest in the 25-year-old is far from done, perhaps little surprise given the lack of depth at left-back in Jesse Marsch’s squad.

The Latest: Smyth drops fresh claim

Writing in a Q&A for The Yorkshire Evening Post on Tuesday, Smyth said that Leeds could well go back in for Wagner in January:

“There has been enough Stateside noise to suggest there is real interest from Leeds. One to watch but as I’ve said elsewhere, we don’t yet know if Leeds will approach the January window differently now that there’s a new manager in place.”

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The Verdict: Exciting mid-season addition

It seems clear that Wagner himself is keen on a move to Leeds, no doubt helped by Marsch being there, who is allegedly driving the move with his MLS past and knowledge of the player.

The German could be an excellent signing by the Whites midway through the season, providing healthy competition to Junior Firpo and ensuring the squad remains fresh.

At 25, Wagner has plenty of years ahead of him to improve, too, so he ticks plenty of boxes when it comes to being a strong long-term addition by Victor Orta and co. It is certainly easy to envisage the transfer happening.

Journalist Pete O’Rourke has dropped a bold Newcastle United claim regarding former Magpies transfer target Hugo Ekitike.

The Lowdown: Deal agreed

It was reported in June that the St James’ Park outfit had agreed a deal with Reims to sign the 20-year-old, with personal terms already agreed as well.

However, talks with the player’s agent – who wanted additional fees and payments – proved too difficult to overcome, so the Tyneside club walked away from the deal.

Ekitike has since signed for Paris Saint-Germain, but he has only played 66 minutes for them so far this season.

The Latest: No regrets?

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke has claimed that Ekitike will not have any regrets about snubbing Newcastle and moving to PSG just yet, despite a lack of game-time for the Ligue 1 champions.

The journalist said of the 20-year-old’s failed Tyneside move: “I don’t think he’ll have any regrets just yet.

“It’s hard to get into that star-studded PSG attacking frontline with those players ahead of him in the pecking order, but he’s a young player Ekitike, and PSG do have high hopes for him in the future as well.”

The Verdict: One that got away

Ekitike is one that got away for Newcastle, given how the Frenchman burst onto the scene last term with 11 goals and four assists across all competitions (Transfermarkt).

Some in France even believe that he could become the ‘next Mbappe’, and he is now playing with the French superstar, albeit seemingly falling behind him, Lionel Messi and Neymar in the pecking order.

Nonetheless, Eddie Howe’s side have signed Alexander Isak from Real Sociedad instead, and with two goals for the Magpies already – including one against Bournemouth in the Premier League on Saturday – they may not be regretting missing out on Ekitike too much.

Transfer insider Dean Jones has shared what he knows about the rumours regarding Leeds United chief Victor Orta and Chelsea.

The Lowdown: Orta links

Orta has now been at Elland Road for five years as sporting director but has recently been linked with an exit.

Reports have suggested that Chelsea have held internal discussions over a potential move for the Spaniard after they missed out on RB Salzburg’s Christoph Freund.

The Blues have both Orta and Bayer Leverkusen’s Tim Steidten on their radar, and Jones has shared what he knows on the former and a possible Stamford Bridge switch.

The Latest: Jones’ update

Talking to GiveMeSport, Jones said that he’s been ‘told’ Orta is indeed on Chelsea’s ‘long list’ of options, but reports there are ‘other strong contenders’, perhaps a silver lining for Leeds fans.

“I’m told he is on their long list as they seek to make sure they get the right man involved to help implement the long-term strategy. There are still some other strong contenders.”

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The Verdict: Fingers crossed

Orta hasn’t got everything spot on during his five-year stint in Yorkshire, however, he was the mastermind behind bringing Marcelo Bielsa to the club back in 2018 so deserves plenty of credit.

He has unearthed plenty of young gems in cut-price deals, with the likes of Illan Meslier, Pascal Struijk and Joe Gelhardt all now first-team regulars under Jesse Marsch.

Therefore, it would be a shame if he was to swap Leeds for Chelsea, but with a number of ‘strong contenders’ on Todd Boehly’s list, you’d like to think that there is a good chance Orta could remain in Yorkshire.

Celtic saw their perfect start to the new Scottish Premiership season come to an end in remarkable fashion on Sunday afternoon, as the Parkhead outfit slipped to a shock 2-0 defeat to St Mirren on the road.

That dismal result not only saw the Hoops taste defeat in the top-flight for the first time in 38 games, but it also handed a real boost to their Old Firm rivals Rangers, with the Ibrox side now only two points behind in the table.

Such an underwhelming performance away in Paisley had been a far cry from the imperious display that Ange Postecoglou’s side had produced in the Glasgow derby just two weeks earlier, with it having been something of a sour way to head into the international break.

The former Yokohama boss was seemingly left to rue his decision to shuffle his pack for the meeting with Stephen Robinson’s side, having insisted that he potentially got it “wrong” by making six changes from the side that had secured a draw against Shakhtar Donetsk just a few days earlier.

Having rested a handful of his star names, the 57-year-old handed a rare chance to some of those in reserve, having previously lauded the depth of his squad following the completion of nine major deals over the summer.

One of the peripheral figures who failed to take their opportunity was summer signing Aaron Mooy, with the Australia international having been hooked at half-time after failing to make an impact in the centre of the park.

As club legend Stiliyan Petrov suggested, the 32-year-old was perhaps suffering from a lack of game time in that disappointing 45-minute outing, with his only other start so far this term having come in the League Cup triumph over Ross County.

The experienced asset notably failed to make a single tackle or interception in that limp first-half showing, while also offering little attacking thrust as he also failed to make a single key pass from his 59 touches, as per SofaScore.

The former Brighton and Hove Albion playmaker had looked “sloppier” than most, in the words of Petrov, as a result of his limited role in the early weeks of the season, notably failing to track his man in the build-up to the home side’s opener.

Pundit Charlie Nicholas also suggested that the 5 foot 9 gem has looked ‘off the pace’ when he has featured so far this term, albeit with the 52-cap man unlikely to be afforded the game time he needs to get up to speed.

With European and domestic commitments to juggle in what is a hectic schedule over the next month or so, Postecoglou would likely have been looking to the likes of Mooy to make an impact when he needs to shuffle his pack, albeit with the title-winning coach perhaps concerned that his fringe assets aren’t of the quality of the usual starters.

When club action does resume at the start of October, it would seemingly be a shock to see the £4.5m-rated man – who is yet to register a goal or an assist in nine games so far this term – still in the starting lineup, having done little to warrant an inclusion last time out.

There was a changing of the guard behind the scenes at Newcastle United in October of last year as PIF completed their takeover of the club from Mike Ashley.

This also led to a change in the dugout as Steve Bruce was relieved of his duties and replaced by Eddie Howe, who was available after leaving Bournemouth at the end of the previous season.

Since their arrival, the Saudi Arabian consortium have backed the manager in the transfer market by signing the likes of Kieran Trippier, Bruno Guimaraes, Alexander Isak, and Sven Botman, among others, to improve the squad.

Their work in their first two windows has resulted in a changing of the guard on the pitch too, as some of the longer-serving members of the squad have found themselves on the fringes.

One player from the Ashley era who has taken a backseat in terms of his importance to the team is central defender Jamaal Lascelles. The Englishman has only played once in the Premier League this season, after featuring 26 times last term, following the signings of Botman and Dan Burn in 2022.

Despite his time at the club potentially coming to an end due to his lack of minutes, Lascelles has been a fantastic signing for Newcastle and has been a fine servant since his arrival in 2014.

The Magpies signed him from Nottingham Forest just over eight years ago and he was valued, by Transfermarkt, at just £540k at the time of the move.

Since then, he has gone on to play 216 competitive matches for the Toon in all competitions and has featured in 153 top-flight games during his time at St. James’ Park.

He has been the club captain since the 2016/17 campaign in the Championship, with then-manager Rafa Benitez hailing his off-pitch qualities: “We have a few players now in the squad who have the character to be captain, but Jamaal has proven himself to be a leader and a big personality in the dressing room and on the pitch.”

Howe previously hailed his “heroic” defending and, back in 2018, the centre-back admitted that young fans looking up to him as their “hero” motivated him to kick on, highlighting his responsibility as a role model off the pitch.

At the time of writing, Transfermarkt values him at £9m. This means that the 28-year-old’s valuation has rocketed by roughly 1,566% since his move to the club in 2014, which illustrates how much the defender has achieved in that time.

Therefore, Ashley played a blinder by signing Lascelles from Forest eight years ago. Not only did he bring in a talented young player who has gone on to be a key part of the team for many, many, years, but he also signed a terrific person who has clearly been a positive influence behind the scenes and to the supporters.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst signed seven players for Glasgow Rangers during the summer transfer window with some having a greater impact than others in the first couple of months of the new season.

Antonio Colak has settled in well, scoring 11 goals in 15 matches, while John Souttar has played just one match since arriving.

The likes of Calvin Bassey and Joe Aribo have departed the Ibrox side, and the Dutchman has yet to find a replacement for the Nigerian midfielder.

This issue might never have happened had Van Bronckhorst made a move for a current PSV Eindhoven player that would have softened the blow of losing Aribo…

Rangers should have signed Joey Veerman

The Light Blues were linked with Veerman back in the summer of 2021 when Steven Gerrard was still the manager. Much depended on the club reaching the Champions League group stages, defeat to Malmo stunted those plans and the club swiftly moved on to other targets.

Interest was thought to be revived as the January transfer window was fast approaching last season, with journalist Pete O’Rourke explaining that Rangers were still keen, saying:

“Veerman will definitely be high on the list of targets.

“They tried to sign him in the summer and he still remains high on their list of potential targets.”

The Dutchman eventually moved to PSV for €6m (£5m) and the manager surely regrets this, especially with losing Aribo and the poor form of Glen Kamara.

The Finnish midfielder has fallen down the pecking order at Ibrox, with his midfield influence draining. He has averaged a SofaScore rating of just 6.43 in the Premiership so far this season while Veerman has an impressive rating of 7.6.

The Dutchman has scored twice and registered one assist, while Kamara has made zero goal contributions. The “influential” midfielder – as dubbed by Ronald de Boer –  has averaged 69.9 touches per match, with the Rangers player having just 26, proving he is always looking for the ball.

It’s clear that Veerman would have been an excellent signing for Rangers, especially with how he has started off this season, combined with the poor form of Kamara. Journalist Josh Bunting described the 23-year-old as a “ball carrier” and this is something the Gers urgently require in their engine room.

Missing out on the midfielder already looks like it is coming back to haunt Van Bronckhorst and hopefully, he doesn’t make the same mistake again on another transfer target.

Frank McAvennie has criticised the behaviour of a number of Rangers supporters during their trip to Liverpool in the Champions League last week.

The Lowdown: Rangers fans cause damage

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side were beaten 2-0 at Anfield in their European clash, in what was ultimately a disappointing performance overall.

Away from the football, the Gers’ travelling fans were in buoyant spirits before the game, although sadly, some went a step too far with their antics.

Several murals of Liverpool players and of Jurgen Klopp were damaged before the match, as reported by the Liverpool Echo, with Rangers supporters seen as the culprits.

The Latest: McAvennie lambasts behaviour

Speaking to Football Insider, McAvennie slammed the behaviour of the individuals who took part in the vandalism:

“It is disappointing. Is it believable? Yes. Did I think it would possibly happen? Yes. I am not going to blame the Rangers support because most of them are pretty good. But there is an element of it in there. They just cause bother.

“It is a football game, they should be so proud of their team. When they won the league they wrecked Glasgow, and that is them winning.

“I would have had someone on that [Klopp] mural because I would have thought something would happen. It happens a lot with Rangers and it does happen with Celtic but nowhere near as bad. It is a shame and it gives Scotland a bad name. We are better than that.”

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The Verdict: There’s always some…

While Rangers fans are renowned for creating a fantastic atmosphere on away days, there is a point at which things can get carried away and this is certainly one of them.

Huge amounts of time, work and passion have gone into the murals in question, with one of Trent Alexander-Arnold particularly renowned, and these senseless acts must be stopped.

Of course, every fan base has a small minority of supporters who cross the line, and the hope is that both sets of fans behave themselves for the corresponding fixture at Ibrox on Wednesday evening, in what should be a thrilling spectacle.

Tottenham manager Antonio Conte could now drop central defensive ace Ben Davies for their Premier League clash against Newcastle after an early team news report emerged.

The Lowdown: Spurs suffer defeat…

On Wednesday, the Lilywhites suffered their first league defeat since their 3-1 loss to Arsenal at the start of the month as Antonio Conte’s side fell to a 2-0 reverse at Manchester United.

Second-half goals from Fred and Bruno Fernandes cemented a tough night for Spurs, who never really looked like scoring and failed to provide any real threat in the final third.

After a disappointing performance, the north Londoners and Conte have some real decisions to make in terms of who takes to the field against a confident, exuberant Newcastle side led by Eddie Howe.

The Magpies have conceded fewer goals than any top-flight side and are currently contending for a top-four place alongside Spurs – not to mention that they’re unbeaten in their last six games.

The Latest: Conte could now drop Davies…

According to some early team news, it appears that Conte may drop Wales defender Davies for their clash against Newcastle in north London tomorrow.

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Evening Standard journalist Dan Kilpatrick claims that the 29-year-old is at risk of being dropped on Sunday, with the ‘probable change’ of summer signing Clement Lenglet coming in for him in a ‘straight swap’.

The Verdict: Right call?

Davies has been a mainstay at Tottenham for the last two seasons, playing in 29 top-flight matches in the 2021/22 campaign, with 28 of those being starts (WhoScored).

Starting in a similar vein this season, Conte has handed him the nod in eight league games so far and ranks as the squad’s seventh-most selected player in terms of minutes (WhoScored).

Davies has been praised for his contribution in a Spurs shirt recently, with the club’s former defender Michael Dawson calling him the ‘perfect’ left-footed centre-back who ‘does everything’ required of a player in that position (via football.london).

Taking this into account, Lenglet may have been impressing behind the scenes if Conte is indeed considering dropping his usual mainstay in favour of the Frenchman.

Saudi Arabian consortium PIF completed their takeover of Newcastle United in October of last year and have enjoyed just over a year in charge of the club.

The team has been successful on the pitch since they became owners as Eddie Howe led the team to survival in the Premier League after taking over from Steve Bruce last season.

Newcastle are now sitting sixth in the top-flight table after 11 matches in the current campaign and the success could be put down, in part, to PIF’s work in the transfer market.

They have not been afraid of splashing the cash since arriving in England, in either of their two windows in charge so far. Back in January, they brought in Bruno Guimaraes, Dan Burn, Kieran Trippier, and Chris Wood on permanent deals.

Sven Botman, Alexander Isak, Matt Targett, who was on loan earlier in the year, and Nick Pope followed them in the summer to bolster Howe’s squad.

One player PIF have struck gold with is Dutch central defender Botman, who joined from Ligue 1 side Lille ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.

Newcastle reportedly paid an initial fee of £32m for the gem and Howe hailed his potential at the time of the move, saying:

“I’m delighted Sven is joining us. He is technically very good, physically very good and has a great attitude.

“At 22, he already has solid experience at the top level but he is at a great age to grow with this team.”

Chronicle journalist Charlie Bennett recently claimed that the machine has “scary potential” and his form in the Premier League this season, at the age of just 22, backs that claim up.

Botman has averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.10 in the top-flight for the Magpies, winning 73% of his individual duels and completing 87% of his attempted passes. This shows that he has been dominant out of possession and comfortable on the ball, whilst providing consistently impressive performances.

Meanwhile, Harry Maguire, who cost Manchester United an eye-watering £80m, has averaged a rating of 6.91 or lower since the start of the 2021/22 season. His new teammate Lisandro Martinez, who reportedly cost them £57m, has averaged a score of 6.88 in his ten Premier League outings so far.

These statistics suggest that Botman, who Josh Bunting described as “colossal” only this week, has been incredible value for money for Newcastle as he has been outperforming two centre-backs who cost considerably more money than he did.

At the age of 22, he now has many years ahead of him to develop and hone his skills in order to improve his performances on the pitch for the Magpies. Now, imagine how good he can be in a few years if he is able to grow because of Howe’s coaching and his experience in the Premier League.

If Maguire and Martinez are worth £80m and £57m respectively, then Botman could end up being worth far more than £32m, which is why PIF have certainly struck gold by signing him.