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Former Scotland defender Alan Hutton believes Liam Cooper will return to Leeds United’s starting lineup to face Tottenham this weekend.

The Lowdown: Cooper absent after red card

The Whites captain has been suspended for the last three matches, having been sent-off in the famous 2-1 win away to soon-to-be Premier League champions Manchester City.

Cooper’s absence has seen Pascal Struijk impress at the heart of the Leeds defence though, leaving Marcelo Bielsa with a selection headache ahead of Saturday’s visit of Tottenham.

Leeds will be looking to bounce back from last weekend’s disappointing 2-0 defeat away to Brighton, before which they conceded just once across games against Manchester United and Liverpool.

In that match against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side, Struijk recorded the most interceptions and clearances of any Whites player, as well as four tackles, via Whoscored, so one could certainly argue he doesn’t deserve to be dropped.

The Latest: Leeds skipper tipped to start

Someone who thinks Cooper will come straight back into the team at Elland Road is Hutton, who spoke to Football Insider about his reasoning behind that decision:

“Well he’s the captain, isn’t he? Normally, that’s the case they do come in.

“You usually find after a defeat, that’s when the changes happen. It wouldn’t surprise me if he came back in. They have been much better defensively, I must add. Off the back of a poor performance but they’ll be looking to put that right.

“Obviously, I want to see him playing and playing well because of Scotland. I think at the back is where Scotland need players and he can be a rock for them.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if he came in. I’m actually looking forward to this game because there could be goals in it, especially if Tottenham continue to play the way they are at the moment.”

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The Verdict: Cooper should start against Spurs

While Struijk has done admirably in recent weeks, it still makes sense to bring Cooper back into the side, considering his leadership and quality.

A total of 222 appearances for Leeds speaks for itself, with the 29-year-old such a consistent player in the Whites’ journey back in the top-flight.

Had Leeds won again at Brighton it could have been argued that changing a winning team made little sense, but Bielsa will surely feel his skipper should return to the back-line.

With Struijk, Diego Llorente and Robin Koch all playing well when called upon, however, there is now pressure on Cooper to perform at a consistently high level, in order to keep his place moving forward.

In other news, Leeds have suffered a big blow between now and the end of the season. Read more here.

Oliver Skipp looks set to miss a significant portion, if not all, of Spurs’ pre-season after suffering a disappointing injury blow this week.

What’s the latest?

The 20-year-old Hotspur Way academy graduate has enjoyed a brilliant season on-loan at Norwich City, where he has helped deliver their second promotion to the Premier League in three years.

On Tuesday night against Reading, Skipp limped off in stoppage time with what seemed to be a foot problem, and now the extent of the injury has been revealed.

His season is now over.

Speaking to local reporters, Canaries boss Daniel Farke said:

“[It is] a big concern. It was pretty painful for him and our physios’ first assessment was they are not that optimistic for him. It seems like a major injury. Right now, too soon to give a firm prediction. We have to continue to assess him over these coming days but it was pretty sore.

“It is a shame because he was unbelievable this season. One of our outstanding players. All our thoughts are with him and we hope he is capable of being fit for the new season.

“It is an issue with his foot. We think it could be broken.”

Spurs themselves have since confirmed that Skipp did indeed fracture his metatarsal and that he’s had surgery to repair the broken bone.

Could impact plans

Given that he’s gone under the knife, it’s highly likely that Skipp will be in recovery and rehab for most of the summer and that will surely hinder his chances of making the Tottenham senior fold next term.

The young midfielder has been lauded as the “future captain” of the club and has hugely impressed at Carrow Road this term.

He is widely expected to be a first-team presence in the near future and you would imagine that whoever is in charge of Spurs come the summer would like to take a good look at him to assess if he truly does have the potential to step up into the Premier League.

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Skipp has played the second-most minutes (3,863) for Norwich this season, so that only tells you just how crucial he has been to their fortunes. Additionally, his teammate Kenny McLean, explained just how integral he has been to the side, he told Sky Sports:

“He makes my job a hell of a lot easier, I’ll tell you that. He’s been outstanding all season and we’re lucky to have him to be honest. For this level, he’s very outstanding and he’s got a huge career ahead of him.”

The 5 foot 9 dynamo could be an ideal partner for the ever-present Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the heart of Spurs’ midfield.

There are doubts over the futures of Harry Winks and Dele Alli; Moussa Sissoko is getting no younger at 31 and both Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso are better deployed in more advanced roles.

However, if Skipp does miss pre-season – or at least the start of the next era under Daniel Levy’s next appointment, as is now expected after his surgery – then Spurs may well want to seek reinforcements in the transfer market and that would deal a crushing blow to his prospects in N17.

Skipp has featured 23 times for Spurs since his debut in October 2018 and should undoubtedly be a big player for the Lilywhites in years to come.

This injury is obviously unfortunate for the player but it is also a cruel setback to the next manager of Spurs, whoever that turns out to be, as he may not be able to take a proper look at Skipp’s credentials, which in turn will impact his plans for next season.

A new manager will always be keen to get a good look at his new players in person, especially a highly-touted youngster but it looks like whoever takes over the Spurs hotseat may have to wait a while before he can assess Skipp close up.

That’s a blow to the incumbent manager as he would want to have as much information as possible about his players and his squad going into his first season in the dugout, but alas, it looks like he’ll have to settle for watching replays of Skipp’s Norwich’s performances to make a decision on whether he feels he is good enough, or if he needs to go into the transfer market.

AND in other news, In-house hire could be Martin Jol 2.0 at Spurs…

Next season has the potential to be a very special one for Fabio Silva at Wolverhampton Wanderers.

It has taken the Portuguese forward a long time to get going at Molineux but he’s finally beginning to demonstrate why Wolves spent £35.6m on his services.

Silva only has four strikes all term but has led the line astutely in the last few weeks, playing a role in four goals in his last six outings.

That said, Nuno Santo and co would be foolish to ignore the need for more firepower in the summer.

Raul Jimenez has been recovering from a fractured skull since November and it’s unknown whether he’ll return in the same ruthless goalscoring form.

If he doesn’t, the Old Gold will have a severe problem on their hands. Without their Mexican sensation, they have been down on goals.

One player they could look to sign is Rafael Leao. The forward joined AC Milan for £32m during the summer window of 2019 but Wolves have a long-standing interest.

Back in November, it was reported that the Midlands outfit tried to sign him last summer. They also revealed that he’s a player Nuno likes.

If they can lure him to the Premier League it would be a marvellous capture, one that could form a truly devastating partnership with Pedro Neto.

The 21-year-old is currently out with a broken patella but has been the star of this Wolves team in 2020/21. He is their top scorer on five strikes and their chief creator with six assists.

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It has been a breakthrough campaign for the youngster and it would be unsurprising if he takes the Premier League by storm next term.

Add Leao to the attack and it could be terrifying for opposition defences. Neto is one of the trickiest attackers in the top-flight of English football but the Milan forward has similar qualities.

Cool in front of goal, the 21-year-old possesses jaw-dropping pace and an ability to beat most players in world football. Like Neto, he can produce magical moments out of nowhere.

Speaking about Leao’s youth career, former striker Rolando Bianchi once commented: “I had seen him at the U20 World Cup with Portugal and he made spectacular plays. He has great speed, he has a touch of the ball.”

The plaudits don’t stop there. In fact, he’s been compared to some of the greatest footballers to ever grace the wonderful sport.

Lille president Gerard Lopez dubbed him the Portuguese Mbappe but the finest of reviews come from his mentor at Sporting Lisbon; Tiago Fernandes.

The coach has been effusive in his praise in the past, saying: “Rafael is a special player for me, he always will be. I met him when he was just 12-13 years old and I’ve trained him in almost all the youth teams of Sporting Lisbon until his debut in the first team. Only Cristiano Ronaldo at Sporting had his talent at that age, I guarantee you.”

Fernandes continued: “He is a number 9, he has always played there. He reminds me of Ronaldo, the ‘Phenomenon’, for his speed, technique and quality in the decisive part of the action.”

If Wolves supporters weren’t sold on the young Portuguese striker then surely those words will provoke excitement.

Leao is yet to really live up to his immense potential at the San Siro with just seven goals to his name this season but he is a player with undoubted quality.

The idea of the Leao running onto a through ball from Neto is enough to make you giddy with excitement; they’d be a dream combination.

AND in other news, Wolves dealt huge blow after big Molineux news emerges, Nuno surely fuming…

Reacting to a development that Tottenham have held ‘extensive discussions’ with Roberto Martinez as their next manager, but have now cooled their interest (Football Insider), pundit Noel Whelan has been left baffled by the news and has told Tottenham to reconsider their stance.

The Lowdown: Martinez out of the running?

Indeed, as per Football Insider, the Spaniard had been making a ‘huge play’ behind the scenes to become Tottenham’s next manager and was said to be eager on taking the role after Belgium’s European Championships this summer.

However, the same outlet then brought an update stating that Tottenham have now held extensive talks with the 47-year-old but cooled their interest as a result.

The Latest: Whelan tells Levy to reconsider Martinez as option

Speaking to Football Insider in reaction, Whelan cannot believe Tottenham have cooled their interest in the former Everton boss and has told Levy that Martinez is ‘ticks every box’ for Spurs.

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“I cannot understand it,” he explained.

“Have they got somebody better than Roberto Martinez? Who have they found that is better than him? That would be incredible. I have no idea.

“Martinez has been a fantastic manager for a number of years now and he is very well respected in European football. You don’t get the Belgium job for no reason. He has done incredible work there with top players. It is not easy to keep them all happy.

“Martinez ticks every box for me as Tottenham manager. He has the man-management skills, the intelligence, the right style of football and he speaks really well.

“I think he would bring out the best in the star players at Spurs. He can manage them the way they need to be managed.”

The Verdict: Whelan half right…

While we believe Martinez is arguably one of the more underrated managerial candidates, especially considering his run to the 2018 World Cup semi-finals with Belgium and FA Cup victory with Wigan, there are better alternatives.

Brendan Rodgers is a name that arguably stands out over Martinez given his superior managerial record and experience.

The Northern Irishman, for instance, has won more games (325) over his managerial career than Martinez (217) whilst averaging more points per 90 (1.83 compared to 1.56).

While his appointment appears unlikely at this stage despite Tottenham’s interest, someone of Rodgers’ calibre is debatably worth the wait despite Martinez recently being lauded as a ‘world class’ candidate by former Scotland boss Alex McLeish.

In other news: 45 y/o now open to joining Spurs, find out more here.

In the seemingly never-ending saga that is Newcastle United’s potential takeover, Rob Lee, who played during the Entertainers era on Tyneside, has exclusively told Football FanCast that there is too much noise around the deal for his liking.

In the latest twist of events, details of the Premier League requesting an extension to prepare their evidence for both legal cases that Mike Ashley has launched against them emerged, with just one being accepted and that is the one surrounding anti-competition.

Ashley thought he had struck gold when Amanda Staveley’s consortium, backed by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, agreed to take the club off his hands, only for them to pull the plug at the last minute.

Takeovers happen all the time in football and they are usually passed through quietly without many people knowing, which is the opposite of this potential deal, something Lee doesn’t like as he exclusively told FFC:

“I genuinely don’t know where this is all going but it looks like Ashley is just trying to get the fans to dislike somebody else rather than himself. He’s blaming the Premier League and seemingly everybody else apart from himself and as I’ve said before, there is way too much noise going on.

“These deals usually get done very quietly but we’re still hanging onto the fact that hopefully, something might happen.”

A deal was agreed for PCP Capital Partners to buy Newcastle over 12 months ago but as Steve Bruce heads into what will be his fifth transfer window as manager, Ashley still holds the keys to the club.

Recently, documents suggested that the arbitration case is set to begin in July, which could determine whether or not Ashley can sell the club to PCP Capital Partners or not.

Writing on Twitter, journalist Sacha Tavolieri, as translated by Sport Witness, has dropped an intriguing claim involving Tottenham Hotspur-linked boss Roberto Martinez.

The Lowdown: Martinez linked to Spurs

The 47-year-old is a manager Spurs apparently like with some outlets even going as far as to say that the Lilywhites have already held extensive discussions (Football Insider).

Elsewhere, reliable correspondent Alasdair Gold believes that while he is a boss Spurs do admire, he is not currently a priority candidate for chairman Daniel Levy.

The Latest: Journalist makes intriguing Martinez claim

Writing on social media, Belgian football journalist Tavolieri has now claimed that Martinez’ agent, Pini Zahavi, was ‘trying to convince Roberto Martínez to sign at Tottenham with the help of Daniel Levy’.

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The reporter also states this story ‘will be interesting’ to follow after the European Championships, perhaps indicating that the Spaniard’s move to Spurs could possibly happen deeper into the summer.

He also appears to suggest that Levy is an admirer of Martinez and personally wants him in north London.

The Verdict: Underrated candidate…

While Tavolieri doesn’t state what Martinez’ stance is on a move to Spurs, he could be a very underrated candidate judging by his record.

Guiding the Red Devils to only their second ever World Cup semi-final back in 2018, where they narrowly lost out on a final appearance to France, Martinez also has a domestic trophy to his name in England.

Indeed, his Wigan Athletic side upset Manchester City at Wembley eight years ago to clinch a first major honour for the Latics – and one can’t help but wonder whether he could bring silverware back to Tottenham.

His record stands at a fairly solid 217 career wins in 498 matches, averaging 1.56 points per game (Transfermarkt).

It’s clear that Spurs could do worse given what he has managed to achieve and the fact he encourages an open style of attacking football.

In other news: ‘I can report’…Journalist lifts lid on transfer development involving Spurs, find out more here.

Leeds United could sign their new Samu Saiz in Club Brugge starlet Noa Lang as a fresh update emerges on their pursuit of the 21-year-old.

What’s the story?

According to recent reports from The Telegraph, the Whites have been been watching the 21-year-old, although they are set to face intense competition if the try to land him in the summer transfer window.

Now, Football Insider have claimed in recent days that Marcelo Bielsa’s side will open talks with Lang now that the Premier League season is officially over.

A new Samu Saiz

The tricky Spaniard Saiz was a revelation when he burst onto the scene at Elland Road, contributing to 12 goals from midfield in a Whites side that struggled throughout the 2017/2018 campaign, averaging a very impressive 1.8 key passes and 1.6 shots per game.

His final season at Elland Road saw him manage 1.5 dribbles per match in the Championship, being fouled 1.8 times and providing the same number of key passes a match.

Just like Saiz, the £18m-rated Lang is a prolific dribbler, averaging 1.5 dribbles per game in the Belgian top flight, a figure which just ranks him outside the top ten in the entire division.

Dubbed a “phenomenon” by Belgian sports journalist Peter Vandenbempt, Lang made history when he became the first player in 60 years to mark his debut with a hat-trick for Ajax.

That saw Ajax manager, Erik Ten Hag, say: “He showed (his talent) today and I am very happy with that. Noa shows (his ability) it during training and during the reserve matches. And today he has also clearly shown it at the highest level too.”

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Lang is just an inch taller than Saiz at 5 foot 10, and like the Spaniard, has that low centre of gravity to be able to turn away from players with ease, before also having the end product to actually contribute to his team – last season alone has seen him rack up 17 goals and 11 assists in all competitions.

If Bielsa is looking for a player to come in and bring back that bit of Saiz magic, then he should look no further than Lang.

Meanwhile, a major update has emerged about Marcelo Bielsa…

Queens Park Rangers have been dealt a blow in their bid to bring Chuks Aneke to the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by London News Online, who claim that the 27-year-old Charlton Athletic forward has not turned down the offer of a new contract from Nigel Adkins’ side.

This latest development comes following a recent report by TEAMtalk, who claimed the £360k-rated attacker – who is said to have received offers from the likes of Queens Park Rangers, Middlesbrough, Reading, Coventry City and Bristol City – had indeed rejected a new deal at The Valley.

The former England U19 international’s current deal at the League One side is set to expire at the end of this month, meaning that if a new contract is not agreed with Charlton, he will become available on a free transfer.

Fans will be gutted

Considering just how impressive Aneke has been for the Addicks this season, the fact the striker has not rejected a new deal with his current side is likely to come as a huge blow to Mark Warburton’s side, as well as leaving fans of the club gutted.

Over his 38 League One appearances for Nigel Adkins’ side this year, the £5.4k-per-week striker bagged 15 goals, provided two assists and created three big chances, as well as winning an average of 4.9 duels and taking 2.3 shots per game.

These metrics saw the 27-year-old earn an average SofaScore match rating of 7.03, ranking him as Charlton’s fifth-best performer in the league – something that is no mean feat when taking into account he started only 11 of his 38 fixtures in the third tier.

As such, it would very much appear as if the former Arsenal man – whom Lee Bowyer dubbed an “immense” player – would have been a fantastic addition to Warburton’s attacking arsenal at QPR ahead of next season, with the 58-year-old looking to build a side capable of mounting a push for a top-six finish in the league.

However, with it not being confirmed that Aneke has put pen to paper on a new deal at The Valley just yet, the Rs’ hopes of landing the forward do not appear to be completely dead in the water, for now.

In other news: Get him gone: Bhatia must ruthlessly axe £13k-p/w QPR dud who’s “trouble” this summer

Southampton are interested in signing Benfica left-back Nuno Tavares, according to O Jogo [via Sport Witness].

The Lowdown: Departures in Hampshire

Looking ahead to the new season, the Saints will undoubtedly be looking towards acquiring reinforcements after an underwhelming 15th-placed finish in the 2020/21 campaign, after which the club issued their retained players list, which heralded some notable absentees.

Squad members such as Jake Hesketh and Josh Sims are among those to move on, although long-serving left-back Ryan Bertrand is the most high-profile departure [Southampton FC]. Set to join Leicester City on a free transfer [Football Insider], he leaves a sizeable void in the left-back area.

Could Nuno Tavares be the man to succeed the England international at St Mary’s?

The Latest: Saints and Napoli interested

The Saints are currently said to be monitoring Tavares alongside Italian giants Napoli [O Jogo, via Sport Witness].

Seemingly, the 21-year-old could be open to a move to the south coast. Southampton are rumoured to have ‘requested information’ on the Portuguese native [O Jogo, via Sport Witness]. Spectacularly, the youngster has fuelled speculation over his future after a video emerged of him complaining over his lack of first-team opportunities ahead of his positional rival Alex Grimaldo [Prime Time Sports].

His next move ‘remains on the table’, signifying there could be some traction to these latest developments [O Jogo, via Sport Witness]

The Verdict: Tavares would be a good signing, if he amends his attitude

Showing competence in attack and defence, Tavares has helped his side to earn eight clean sheets in 2020/21, whilst also completing 1.8 dribbles per game on average [WhoScored].

In terms of playing ability, the 21-year-old would probably fit nicely into the St Mary’s fold this summer. Furthermore, the advantageous nature of his age would mean a near-certainty of high resale value further down the line – he is currently valued at just £6.3m by Transfermarkt.

However, in light of the video about Grimaldo, his attitude needs work, especially in as competitive an environment as the Premier League. If Tavares could prospectively keep a lid on his temper and not land himself in hot water needlessly, he could have a very big future in the game.

In other news, ex-Saints vice-chairman Les Reed lifts the lid on his relationship with the club owner.

According to Calciomercato, Fabio Paratici has already tried to sign Italy number one shot stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma for Tottenham Hotspur.

The Lowdown: Paratici appointment…

The 48-year-old has been confirmed as Tottenham Hotspur’s new sporting director, working under chairman Daniel Levy.

Paratici has a good reputation in masterminding some noteworthy transfers at former club Juventus, including the certain acquisition of superstar forward Cristiano Ronaldo (The Athletic).

As such, there have been no shortage of reports detailing his transfer plans for Spurs, with Calciomercato now dropping a huge claim involving Donnarumma.

The Latest: Paratici tried to sign Donnarumma…

As per the Italian outlet, he has already made an attempt to sign the star keeper for Spurs this summer.

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However, Paratici was rebuffed in his efforts despite making ‘several’ phone calls to agent Mino Raiola.

In the ‘last few days’, he apparently made repeated attempts to negotiate with Donnarumma’s representative over a possible move to north London.

There was also strong interest from Barcelona, but it now looks like the 22-year-old is destined for Paris-Saint Germain and a link up with former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino.

Currently away at the Euros with Italy, Donnarumma will apparently undergo his PSG medical ‘next week’ after the Azzurri take on Switzerland (Fabrizio Romano).

The Verdict: Big loss…

As Spurs contemplate the future of long-time number one Hugo Lloris, a swoop for Donnarumma certainly would have been quite the coup.

He conceded just 38 goals in 37 Serie A matches over 2020/2021, keeping an impressive 14 clean sheets in that time (Transfermarkt).

AFC Bournemouth keeper Asmir Begovic also raved over his capabilities in an interview with the Guardian last year, calling him ‘phenomenal’ and a ‘huge talent’ who has enjoyed a ‘remarkable’ rise.

Indeed, the colossal keeper could have even joined Spurs on a free deal given his AC Milan contract expires at the beginning of next month.

Alas, Paratici’s bold attempt ended in failure with PSG and Pochettino reportedly winning the race – a real shame as Spurs aim to start a rebuild.

In other news: ‘Sources close…’ – Journalist lifts lid on exciting Tottenham transfer development, find out more here.