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Say what you will about Leeds United, but you’re never short of drama at Elland Road.

This should be a time of celebration and unrivalled joy at Leeds, but still there remains a dark cloud lingering overhead, threatening to scupper the club’s post-promotion plans.

Of course, we’re talking about the Jean-Kevin Augustin situation.

Leeds had agreed to sign the Frenchman on a permanent deal this summer if they were promoted, but after the striker failed to start a single game since his arrival in January, they understandably don’t want him, but Leipzig still want their money.

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Nobody quite knows how this saga is going to end, but Phil Hay has given us his informed view on what is going to happen.

What’s been said then?

The journalist wrote a column in The Athletic documenting Leeds’ transfer plans this summer, and inevitably he had to broach the elephant in the room that is Augustin.

“Augustin was due to sign permanently for around £18 million if Leeds won promotion but a combination of injuries and the player’s attitude put off Bielsa. That deal looks increasingly likely to end in a legal dispute as Leipzig push for the money they were promised and Leeds attempt to wriggle out of a transfer they no longer want to complete.” Hay wrote.

Legal battle

If this goes to the courts it’ll certainly be an interesting case to follow.

If it’s been wholly agreed that Leeds would take Augustin off of Leipzig’s hands, it’s going to be very tough for them to get out of paying the fee, unless a settlement is reached where United pay a sum to get out of the deal or they make up any sale of the Frenchman to £18m.

It’s also interesting to ponder what the player’s view on all of this is.

Personal terms were presumably agreed already back in January, but it’s hard to imagine that Augustin will want to come back to Leeds after playing minimal minutes and seemingly not seeing eye to eye with the manager.

Whatever happens, Leeds have to hope this is wrapped up quickly so that they can get on with their other transfer business.

Leeds United are about to embark on their first Premier League campaign in over 16 years soon but as Fulham and more recently, Norwich City have shown, it’s by no means an easy task to remain.

There’s no real method to success – Sheffield United have shown a measured but shrewd approach, but you’d imagine a lot of it comes down to Chris Wilder whilst Aston Villa’s free-spending summer almost cost them, though ultimately they’re still in the top-flight.

Whether the Yorkshire giants spend huge or merely pick up a few signings remains to be seen. However, it can’t hurt to look from within, especially given the young talents Marcelo Bielsa has at his disposal.

In January, the title winners made an exciting move for Manchester City starlet Ian Poveda, a player who Pep Guardiola lauded for having “incredible power” to develop before doffing his cap to his old mentor.

The two-time Premier League champion believes Bielsa’s system is even a perfect fit for the 20-year-old, so it is perhaps a surprise to have barely seen him feature since January.

It took until June for him to make his debut from the bench against Cardiff City before making his full maiden bow two games from the season’s climax at Derby County.

Poveda has shown encouraging signs during his four appearances and he must be unleashed on the top-flight next season.

In the final two matches of the campaign, the Englishman recorded one assist, two shots, three key passes and three successful dribbles, via WhoScored.

The 5 foot 5 winger has been described by Goal as “a very good dribbler, capable of playing on both flanks” and despite having a small frame can shield the ball cleverly by using his body.

Whilst former Whites forward Noel Whelan believes Poveda “looked sharp, [has] quick feet, [is] confident on the ball, [has] great technique and a lot of pace.”

The young sensation is also able to play through the middle, which poses an interesting question – do Leeds really need to target QPR’s Eberechi Eze?

Valued at £20m, United could spend these funds elsewhere such as in central defence where there is only skipper Liam Cooper currently.

Forget that, Bielsa has a player ready to tear the Premier League apart already at his disposal.

AND in other news, Marcelo Bielsa must buck his trend to sign Champions League star…

Chelsea are one step away from welcoming major summer target Kai Havertz to Stamford Bridge. 

Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has reported that the Blues are in the final stages of talks for signing the Bayer Leverkusen star. A final fee of €80m (£71.6m) plus €20m (£17.9m) in add-ons is set to be agreed by both clubs.

The Havertz-to-Chelsea talks have arguably been among the biggest and most discussed of the summer transfer window. Several Premier League clubs initially showed an interest in the midfielder, but due to the current financial climate, the Blues have come out on top.

After enduring their two-window transfer ban, Chelsea are in a position to splash the cash and can provide Leverkusen with the hefty funds that they are seeking. Roman Abramovich has already signed off deals on new recruits Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner, with further exciting arrivals potentially on the horizon.

Chelsea had a very impressive second half to their 2019/20 Premier League season, recovering from a poor start to finish in a Champions League spot. The Blues made easy work of closing the gap on Leicester, who looked sure to secure a top four spot for themselves prior to the season being halted.

After such a dangerous-looking finish, Lampard and co will be throwing everything they’ve got at the league next season, and their chances of landing another English title may have just been amplified.

With the addition of a playmaker like Havertz in midfield, Chelsea could be serious contenders for their seventh league title. The 22-year-old boasted 12 goals and six assists in the Bundesliga last season (via Transfermarkt).

On six occasions last term, the Blues missed out on three points by settling for a draw. Havertz could be the answer to enhancing their attack and ensuring that the majority of their fixtures end in victory.

Do you think Havertz will be a valuable signing for Chelsea? Join the conversation in the comments below!

Sunday wasn’t a great day to be a West Ham fan.

The Hammers lost their second game of the season at the Emirates as Arsenal overcame them 2-1, and to make matters worse, the issue that many fans have been complaining about was brought to light that very morning.

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Indeed, while West Brom may have lost 5-2 to Everton over the weekend, the one bright spark in their team was Grady Diangana, who immediately showed that he was of Premier League standard, and more painfully, showed West Ham exactly what he can provide at this level.

The winger had an excellent game getting two shots off, with both of those being on target and one ending up in the back of the net.

Playing out wide against Everton is no easy feat either, with the Toffees possessing two fantastic full-backs in the shape of Seamus Coleman and Lucas Digne, but Diangana made a mockery of his man, completing three dribbles and being fouled a further three times.

Clarets fans were fuming when Diangana was sold to the Baggies, with club captain Mark Noble hitting out at the club for allowing him to leave, and unfortunately for the higher-ups at the London Stadium, this one has come back to bite them while it’s still fresh in everyone’s memory.

Luckily, the transfer window is still open for a few more weeks, so the Hammers do have time to put this right if they can find a winger as talented as Diangana for a price they can afford, but if it were that easy then there wouldn’t have been so much uproar when the London club allowed the 22-year-old to leave.

Global talent and Liverpool target Kylian Mbappe could have his price tag lowered by Paris Saint-Germain if he doesn’t pen a new deal with the club.

The highly sought-after young talent will have just one year left on his current contract once this season is over. According to L’Equipe (relayed via @AnfieldEdition), the Ligue 1 champions may be willing to slash his transfer fee to £91m.

The Reds have been loosely linked with Mbappe over the course of the last 12 months, but recently talks seemed to have reignited. Recent reports claimed that Liverpool and Real Madrid had both entered talks with the World Cup winner over a potential move.

Mbappe’s current Transfermarkt value is a whopping £162m, which makes him the most expensive player on the database. Signing him for £91m will be a huge discount on what he is really worth.

Many Liverpool fans love the idea of making a move for him and are hoping that Michael Edwards can work his magic on a deal.

One supporter has tweeted ‘please I beg’, whilst another thinks that ‘we could get him’ next year.

Read more replies from the Anfield faithful here:

Do you think Liverpool can make a move for Mbappe happen? Join the conversation in the comments below!

Liverpool slipped down the Premier League table after suffering their first loss of the season at the hands of a relentless Aston Villa side.

A shock 7-2 defeat at Villa Park has left Jurgen Klopp reeling, with very few positives to take away from any of his players.

The Reds were without Sadio Mane during their humiliating loss on the road and it certainly showed in their attack. Mohamed Salah singlehandedly netted both of Liverpool’s goals last night, but his lone efforts were nowhere near enough to give Liverpool a window back into the match.

When is it time to question Roberto Firmino?

Jurgen Klopp’s beloved Brazilian and the club’s No.9 has a truly unique role. Whilst Anfield has been graced with some of the best strikers of their time, Roberto Firmino operates in a completely different manner. Whilst he has been questioned for his lack of goals scored before, his deeper playing role allows for clinical wingers Salah and Mane to do the talking in front of the net.

This certainly worked last season as Liverpool lifted their first ever Premier League trophy. The attacking trio finished the term on a combined 57 goals and 38 assists, continuing to prove that their niche set up really does get the club results.

However, when one of Klopp’s main goal sources is absent – which isn’t very often due to their impeccable fitness – Firmino becomes a lot more exposed and his lack of goals could quickly be turning into a problem for the reigning league champions.

Firmino vs Premier League strikers

Despite assisting Salah’s second goal against Villa, the Brazilian was unable to capitalise on his own chances. Firmino managed two shots on target but couldn’t convert – even squandering a glaring opportunity to pull a goal back for his side and open up his account for the season (via Sofascore).

Last time round, the 29-year-old scored just nine league goals for the 2019/20 campaign. For a winger, this would be a highly respectable number, but for the focal point of a title-winning side’s attack, it’s extremely questionable. When comparing his goal count to other Premier League strikers from the same season, he is way behind the pack.

Golden Boot winner Jamie Vardy tallied 23 goals in total, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Danny Ings both fell short of the accolade with 22 and even Harry Kane, who missed nine games due to injury, scored an impressive 18.

Further down the table, but still high in double figures, Raul Jimenez and Marcus Rashford (17), Sergio Aguero (16) and Tammy Abraham (15) all led their team from the front with impressive goalscoring performances (via Premier League).

A headache for Klopp

A striker should be a player the manager can rely on for goals, that goes without saying. Whilst Firmino’s vision and footballing IQ is too valuable to bench, Klopp should be considering revamping his attack and perhaps recruiting a natural goal poacher to play slightly ahead of a deeper-lying Firmino.

If this is an option for Liverpool, they have less than a day to get something done. With Rhian Brewster now with Sheffield United, Klopp has just Divock Origi to rely on, which may not be enough to try and win back-to-back Premier League titles if Firmino isn’t playing well.

In other news, Liverpool are making huge mistake by putting Xherdan Shaqiri on the chopping block…

Leeds United have had some transfer shockers throughout their history.

The Jean-Kevin Augustin saga could eventually prove to be one of Leeds’ worst transfers, while we’ve already spoken about why Seth Johnson is amongst Leeds’ worst buys ever, but when you’re talking about the worst sale the club have ever made, there are a fair few candidates.

A lot of these came during the time period that saw United hampered by a number of financial issues, future England international Aaron Lennon was sold for just £1m, Harry Kewell’s questionable transfer to Liverpool saw United sold short on the fee, while getting less than £1m for a prime Lee Bowyer was nothing short of criminal.

However, in the past decade, there is one sale that stands out above the rest, and Wednesday night again proved what an error Leeds made.

Of course, we’re talking about Kasper Schmeichel.

The Dane was once again in fine form for his country against England, keeping the Three Lions at bay with a clean sheet, despite facing a front three with a combined transfermarkt value of £328.5m, but what else do you expect from a Premier League-winning goalkeeper?

Schmeichel will undoubtedly go down as one of the great Premier League goalkeepers of the 2010s, being a key component in Leicester City’s unbelievable title win, while continuing to be a consistent performer as the Foxes cemented themselves as a top-half force in the league.

The 33-year-old’s one season at Leeds is easy to forget, but it shouldn’t be forgotten that he was sold against his will.

Indeed, the goalkeeper spoke of his disappointment when he found out that Leeds had accepted an offer from Leicester, but in hindsight, it was the best move of Schmeichel’s career and one of the worst sales that Leeds ever sanctioned.

United sold him in order to strengthen their goalkeeper position, with their original press release even name-dropping colossal flop Paul Rachubka as a potential replacement, but here we are a decade later and United have only recently stopped faffing around with dodgy goalies such as Felix Weidwald, Bailey Peacock-Farrell and Kiko Casilla.

Schmeichel again proved his quality last night by keeping England at bay, but that’s nothing that we haven’t already seen over the past five years of his career.

Reliable Italian journalist Mario Sconcerti, as quoted by Sempre Inter, says Christian Eriksen is disillusioned at Inter Milan and it could be a ‘serious case’, with Tottenham reportedly eyeing a swoop for their former playmaker.

Eriksen, who left north London for the San Siro in January, has struggled to replicate his Premier League form for the Nerazzurri, with Football Insider reporting that he was offered to several Premier League clubs including Spurs on deadline day earlier this month.

Eriksen on the way out?

Fabrizio Romano also claimed that Tottenham are contemplating taking him back, with Sconcerti now slamming Eriksen’s most recent performance and potentially hinting his future at Inter is now a ‘serious case’.

Bearing that in mind, Eriksen is looking more likely than ever to leave, with a return to England not being ruled out by various reports in the press.

Tottenham secured the sensational return of Gareth Bale last month, putting pen to paper on a season-long loan deal following the Welshman’s dissatisfaction with life at Real Madrid.

As per this inside take on Eriksen at Inter Milan, Sconcerti believes the case with him is a serious one – and Spurs could take the opportunity to swoop for another of their former players in January.

Transfer Tavern take

Claiming that the 28-year-old ‘doesn’t seem to care’, the Denmark midfielder could be seeking a move away judging by the journalist’s take on Eriksen, but it remains to be seen whether Tottenham go through with a future swoop.

If Spurs manage to re-sign the playmaker, it could be just as noteworthy as the Bale signing.

In other news: Alasdair Gold has dropped an update which could make ‘Spurs fans very happy’, find out more here and don’t forget to comment below with your views…

Southampton winger Josh Sims has made a superb start to life at Doncaster Rovers in League One and perhaps Ralph Hasenhuttl should consider giving him a chance in his first-team when he is set to return to the club in January.

The 23-year-old, who has been with Southampton since joining from rivals Portsmouth in 2012, joined Darren Moore’s side on loan during the summer transfer window and already looks to be showing his class in the third division.

In five appearances in League One for the Yorkshire club, he has contributed an impressive one goal and four assists, which included three assists in one game in a scintillating display against Ipswich Town in October (per Transfermarkt).

He then put in another spectacular performance against FC United of Manchester in the FA Cup first round on Saturday, netting twice as Rovers stormed to a 5-1 victory across the Pennines and taking his total number of goal contributions for the club to seven already (BBC Sport).

Although the Englishman has struggled in previous loan spells with Reading and New York Red Bulls, he has enjoyed a superb start to life with the Keepmoat Stadium outfit and if he continues to impress, perhaps he can convince those at Southampton that when he returns, he is ready to be given more of a chance in the first-team.

The young winger has shown his worth at academy level, having contributed 14 goals and 14 assists for the Southampton B team, which perhaps led to him being given a chance for the Saints’ first-team, having already made 27 appearances for the senior side during his career.

This suggests that those in the Southampton hierarchy trust that he has the ability to be part of the first-team setup and perhaps this loan to Doncaster was just about him finding some form in a lower division.

Back in 2019, Hasenhuttl admitted that he was surprised by just how “strong” Sims was in training and praised him for his performance in their 2-1 win against Tottenham Hotspur.

So, the Austrian is clearly a fan of Sims and perhaps, if his impressive performances with Doncaster continue, it won’t be too long until he returns to the South Coast and starts making an impression in the Premier League.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Marlon Harewood has highlighted where Jose Mourinho must strengthen his Spurs side once the January transfer window opens.

The north London outfit made an impressive eight new signings over the summer as Daniel Levy wasted no time in looking to improve on last season’s disappointing finish. Along with loanee signing Gareth Bale, Tottenham acquired full-backs Matt Doherty and Sergio Reguilon, midfielders Giovani Lo Celso and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg as well as 22-year-old central defender Joe Rodon.

Whilst this isn’t a haul to be sniffed at, Harewood believes that Spurs should have taken a leaf from Chelsea’s book during their summer spree.

“Chelsea made a very good signing in Thiago Silva,” the former striker said. “That’s a great signing for them to add to what they’ve already got.

“Spurs need a player like that. Someone who’s got experience and a stature to help everyone around him.”

The Blues brought the Brazilian icon to Stamford Bridge from Paris Saint Germain on a free contract. Silva is now one of the highest paid players at the club, earning a reported £110,000 per week.

Although Spurs have the likes of club veterans Toby Alderweireld and Eric Dier, they do lack a natural leader who has ‘been there and done that’. Silva arrives at Chelsea boasting seven Ligue 1 titles, seven French Super Cups, an Italian Super Cup and a Copa America trophy (via Transfermarkt).

The 36-year-old also has 93 senior caps for Brazil and has represented his country at both the World Cup and the Olympics. This kind of experience is something that will boost Tottenham’s backline and help to grow younger players like Rodon and 21-year-old Japhet Tanganga.

“Tottenham need a centre-half like that in their backline,” Harewood reaffirmed.

In other news, Harry Winks England performance sends Mourinho a clear message…