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West Bromwich Albion boss Slaven Bilic could be reunited with one player he once signed for a club-record £18m if reports are to be believed…

What’s the word?

According to Ghana SoccerNet, the Baggies are keen on bringing Swansea City winger Andre Ayew to the Hawthorns before the transfer deadline this summer.

They claim that the Championship outfit could be interested in offloading the 30-year-old due to the £80k-per-week wages he’s reportedly on at the Liberty Stadium whilst Ayew himself would like to play in the Premier League.

He has started both of the Swans’ opening two matches this term and is valued at just £4.32m by Transfermarkt.

Another winger?

It would be an interesting prospect to see Ayew swap the second tier for another venture into the top-flight but do West Brom even need another winger?

The veteran was largely ineffective in the two matches against the Baggies last season, failing to contribute during a 5-1 thrashing or the 0-0 draw.

Although he is a player that Bilic knows really well, speaking back in 2017 following a shock win over Spurs, the Croatian boss said: “It’s me who wanted Andre to join us from Swansea. I rate Andre very highly. He’s a great player. He was the game-changer.”

Whilst summer arrival Conor Gallagher enjoyed a loan spell alongside him at Swansea during the second half of last season and the Ghanian believes the young Chelsea prospect is fit for the Premier League.

During that campaign, Ayew provided 16 goals and seven assists whilst averaging 2.6 shots, 2.1 dribbles and 0.9 key passes per game, via WhoScored.

That’s six more goals than what Charlie Austin and Hal Robson-Kanu could manage and only Grady Diangana managed more dribbles per appearance.

The Baggies could probably do with a new goal threat after appearing rather lacklustre in front of the sticks so far this campaign, so perhaps a move for the Swansea veteran would be a shrewd addition this close to deadline day.

AND in other news, Albion must win race to sign “skilled” starlet who “causes defenders nightmares”…

Leeds United transfer chief Angus Kinnear has spoken out amid recent transfer rumours circulating the club and Brighton defender Ben White.

The 22-year-old was on loan at Elland Road last season and the newly-promoted club recently lodged a £22m bid for the centre-back, which the Seagulls rejected.

As per Leeds Live, Kinnear indicated that the Yorkshire outfit remain interested in White but are exploring other options if Brighton don’t budge. He said: “The reality is, he did a wonderful job for us, but he’s a Brighton player. They rate him very highly, I’m sure they see us as a rival.

“The conversations are continuing but we have to be respectful of Brighton’s position, that he is their player.

“We have two or three other names in that group in terms of that position, who supporters should be really excited about. I know emotionally it won’t have the same appeal as getting Ben back. But if it doesn’t work with Ben we’ve got some good cover lined up.”

White had only played twice for Brighton prior to being loaned out to Leeds a year ago but he had an excellent 2019/20 season at Elland Road, being ever-present in helping Marcelo Bielsa’s team to end their 16-year exile from the Premier League.

The Yorkshire club are far from alone in terms of transfer interest in the defender. According to The Sun, all of last term’s Premier League top six are keen on the 22-year-old, who is valued at more than £50m by the Seagulls.

Further to Kinnear’s comments about Leeds casting a wider net in their hunt for a centre-back, The Telegraph reported at the weekend that the Whites are interested in Freiburg’s Robin Koch, who according to O Jogo could be available for just £10.8m – a fraction of what Brighton are demanding for White.

With Leeds not putting all their eggs in the White basket, Brighton may feel that one contender in the race for the 22-year-old’s signature could soon drop out.

The Seagulls are sending a clear message that they won’t be intimidated into selling the defender on the cheap by slapping a £50m price tag on him, even though he has never played a Premier League game.

With transfer speculation surrounding the futures of Lewis Dunk and Shane Duffy at the Amex Stadium, it is only right that Brighton take a no-nonsense stance with White, and that may be enough to convince Leeds to look elsewhere for centre-back reinforcements instead.

Brighton fans, are you proud of the club’s hardline stance on White’s future amid such widespread transfer interest? Comment below with your views!

Tottenham Hotspur ace Serge Aurier is set for a shock exit from the club this summer.

Just days after his brother Christopher was murdered outside of a nightclub in Toulouse, recent reports have suggested that the defender is expected to push for a move away from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the summer.

According to the Evening Standard, Spurs didn’t receive any approaches for the Ivorian last year but they are more likely to listen to offers when the transfer window opens.

Aurier, who was signed by former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino, has entered the last two years of his contract and has shown no interest in agreeing a new deal.

The Ivory Coast international hasn’t had it easy in the past few weeks, following the news that his younger brother was tragically shot dead in France, not long after the Spurs player was forced to apologise for breaking UK government guidelines during the nationwide lockdown for a third time.

Jose Mourinho is short of options at right-back, as Aurier is the only natural player in that position who is still at the club while Kyle Walker-Peters is out on loan at Southampton.

If Aurier leaves, this could open up an opportunity for Japhet Tanganga to stake his claim in the starting lineup. Tanganga has been one of the few success stories in a difficult season for Spurs. His versatility has enabled him to play across the back line and he impressed Mourinho in his debut against Liverpool.

The 21-year-old could save the club millions if he is given the chance to prove himself on the flank. The Englishman has developed a reputation for putting his body on the line, as is evident by his characteristics, and this physicality is exactly what Mourinho has been seeking in his players at Tottenham.

Tottenham fans, should Daniel Levy let Serge Aurier leave? Let us know in the comments below!

One of the hallmarks of Jose Mourinho’s long managerial career has been signing high-profile players for big money. It was the case at the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United, but with the current climate affecting how Premier League teams will spend money, the Portuguese man may have to look at different ways of strengthening his current Tottenham squad.

And according to Italian publication CalcioNapoli24 (via Sport Witness), the Lilywhites are after Ajax’s 21-year-old starlet Danilo Pereira.

The report claims that Spurs have joined the likes of Napoli and Benfica in the race to sign the Brazilian, despite him only making three appearances for the first-team at Ajax.

Capable of playing through the middle up top, or on either flank, Danilo has been in prolific form for the youth sides, netting 24 times in just 42 total games for Ajax’s U21s.

Danilo is said to be inspired by Manchester City’s £50.4m-rated star Gabriel Jesus, who like him, also grew up in the favelas back in Brazil, and that as well as his background, is also hopeful of mirroring his style of play too.

If Mourinho is keen on rebuilding Spurs with far less costlier young talents, then he could do a lot worse than Danilo, who appears to be on the verge of making a real breakthrough at Ajax judging by his performances at academy level.

Another day, another layer added to the Scottish football saga of which Rangers are at the very centre of.

The latest news in that respect is that, after the Gers requested that another investigation be commissioned along with Hearts and Stranraer, the SPFL have organised an Emergency General Meeting that will be held on May 12th, in which there will be a vote to see if another investigation will take place.

Not only that, the governing body north of the border have sent an open letter to all clubs in Scotland, effectively saying that another investigation would be a waste of time – quite frankly, you cannot take your eyes of what is happening.

Now, Graham Spiers of The Scottish Times has had his say on the issue. Whilst he admits that Rangers may have proof of wrongdoing, he said he hopes that Gers managing director Stewart Robertson is not playing up to the fans’ feelings of conspiracy against the club. He even called him the “weakest man in football”.

As you can imagine, the club’s supporters were far from happy with his comments – one even called him “the weakest man in journalism.”

They took to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

Let us know what you think!

The 2018-19 Premier League campaign was an impressive one for Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool side, with the Reds falling just short of champions Manchester City.

Despite losing just once in the league all year Klopp’s team finished one point adrift of City, with a total of 97 points.

Their one defeat came to City themselves on January 3 and after starting the 2019-20 with eight consecutive wins, talk began about them perhaps going for the record of most league matches in a row unbeaten.

A 3-0 defeat to Watford in February put an end to that incredible run though, five matches short of the record, while also dashing hopes of the club become the second to go an entire Premier League season unbeaten.

With that in mind, we looked back into the archives with a view to some of the longest unbeaten runs in the Premier League era.

Here, we look at the longest unbeaten runs embarked upon by all of the current Premier League sides…

20. Brighton & Hove Albion – 5 games

Brighton have twice gone on five match unbeaten runs, with both coming in their debut campaign under Chris Hughton.

19. Watford – 6 games

Surprisingly, Watford’s longest unbeaten Premier League run came this term following the appointment of new boss Nigel Pearson.

18. Bournemouth – 7 games

Bournemouth’s Premier League story has been something of a fairytale and it is only fair that their longest unbeaten run included wins over Arsenal and Chelsea.

17. Burnley – 8 games

A side that have been difficult to beat under boss Sean Dyche, with their best run to date coming last season as they looked to avoid the drop.

16. Crystal Palace – 8 games

Crystal Palace have established themselves as a Premier League mainstay under Roy Hodgson and it was the former England boss who oversaw their longest unbeaten run in 2017/18.

15. Sheffield United – 8 games

The Blades are enjoying a brilliant season under Chris Wilder but there best run goes back to 1994 when long-standing boss Dave Bassett was still in charge.

14. Southampton – 9 games

The Saints longest unbeaten run came during the 2002-03 season, the same year they reached the FA Cup final, while they were under the management of Gordon Strachan.

13. Norwich City – 10 games

Norwich City may be bottom but after their promotion to the Premier League in 2011 they went on a 10 match unbeaten run under Paul Lambert.

12. West Ham United – 10 games

Perhaps a club that has not quite achieved what it has set out to in recent years, the Hammers’ best run came in 2016 as they secured a place in the Europa League.

11. Everton – 11 games

Despite being in the Premier League since its inception, Everton have only twice managed an unbeaten run of 11 games. Both came under David Moyes in 2010 and 2012 respectively.

10. Wolverhampton Wanderers – 11 games

A side that have grown in stature in recent years, their best run came this term under current boss Nuno Espirito Santo.

9. Leicester City – 12 games

Despite their success this season, it is no surprise Leicester’s best run came during the title campaign in 2015-16 under Claudio Ranieri.

8. Aston Villa – 14 games

Villa’s longest unbeaten run came back in 1998 when they briefly led the league table.

7. Newcastle United – 14 games

Alan Pardew saw an unlikely upturn in results as he guided Newcastle to a fifth-place finish in 2012.

6. Tottenham Hotspur – 14 games

Perhaps surprisingly for a side that have seen such success in recent seasons, Spurs best run is 14 matches unbeaten which they achieved in 2015 and 2018 under Mauricio Pochettino.

5. Manchester United – 29 games

Considering United are the most successful side in the Premier League era, it is surprise to them fifth on this list. However, Sir Alex Ferguson achieved the feat twice in 1998-1999 and 2010-11.

4. Manchester City – 30 games

A club that has seen huge success in recent years, their 30 match run came in 2017-18 under Pep Guardiola, only to be ended by Klopp’s Liverpool.

3. Chelsea – 40 games

This immense run came during a period of domination for the club under Jose Mourinho which saw them win consecutive league titles in 2005 and 2006.

2. Liverpool – 44 games

An incredible run that came to an end earlier this year, Klopp’s side looked like they could go a whole season unbeaten but fell foul at Watford, losing 3-0.

1. Arsenal 49 games

The crowning glory of Arsene Wenger’s career, this run straddled three seasons and included an entire unbeaten Premier League season in 2003-04.

Many Newcastle United fans are fuming at claims from Gordon Taylor after he gave his thoughts to BBC Radio 4 (via ChronicleLive) about the season restarting.

As per the outlet, the PFA chief spoke about Project Restart, as he said that we will have to wait and see on whether the campaign will restart and whether it will run smoothly. Taylor warned: “We as a footballing community do not know what the future holds for the beautiful game, but we do know what propositions and ideas have been put forward.”

The 75-year-old cited some possible changes should the season resume, including more substitutions, games possibly not being a full 45 minutes per half and neutral venues. Taylor added that the PFA are trying to wait and see what the proposals are and have the courtesy to let the managers, coaches and players assimilate all those and come to a considered view. [BBC Radio 4, via ChronicleLive]

These members of the Toon faithful fumed when they heard the claims on Twitter, with one Magpies fan calling Taylor a ‘clown’:

Geordies fans, what do you think of Taylor’s claims about the season possibly restarting? Comment below with your views!

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

Jose Mourinho is desperate to keep Harry Kane at Tottenham Hotspur, per The Daily Telegraph.

What’s the word?

Mourinho was appointed Spurs manager on Wednesday morning.

And the report states that the former Manchester United and Chelsea boss is adamant that the striker must not be allowed to leave the club in the coming transfer windows.

He is said to have told Daniel Levy that he will not need to spend huge sums of money in order to win trophies at the club, but is adamant that Kane must be kept at the club.

He rates the 45-cap England captain as one of the best strikers in world football and

A report from Spanish outlet El Desmarque earlier this week had claimed that Real Madrid had entered into talks over a deal for Kane that would see Karim Benzema go the other way, but the Telegraph reports that chairman Levy values the Spurs star at £250m and is also determined to keep him.

An intriguing link-up

It remains to be seen how this will work.

Mourinho has worked with some top forwards throughout his career, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Didier Drogba.

But, as Football FanCast has previously detailed, only two players have ever scored more than 22 league goals in a single league season under his management.

Thus, he may have to change his approach to bring the best out of Kane, though this report will be encouraging for Spurs fans.

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The signs are there that Mourinho believes Kane can be a key player for seasons to come as he bids to bring silverware to north London, in order to maintain his record of winning a trophy at every single club he has managed since Porto.

He will need the England international to hit the net with regularity in the coming weeks and months if he is to have any chance; the pressure is on for the forward but he has been so prolific in recent seasons – winning back-to-back Golden Boots in 2015/16 and 2016/17 – that it is difficult to imagine him wilting.

This could be an ideal partnership for Spurs.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Marcelo Bielsa made an eye-opening claim about Eddie Nketiah during his press conference on Thursday, but that wasn’t the biggest takeaway from that statement as it seems that the Argentine has dropped a hint about his future plans.

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What’s been said then?

The quote we’re interested in is actually what he said about Nketiah in his press conference.

“I hope he will still be here and I hope he wants to stay with us,” said Bielsa.

“I think it’s important he solidifies his integration into Leeds and it would be good for that if he stays after January and one more year so that he and Leeds are able to show the confidence we’re looking for in each other.

“That (returning next season) would be ideal to allow him to be a success at a club, like Leeds.

“It’s clear that Leeds consider Nketiah to be a good player for us.

“We’re trying to make him feel that Leeds is the proper place for him to develop.”

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Dropping a hint

The fact that Bielsa is thinking ahead to next season and saying that he wants to have Nketiah at the club next year hints that the Argentine wants to stay beyond the current term.

The 64-year-old has never been one to stick around at a club as he’s never managed more than 113 matches at one club since the turn of the millennium, and even then his stint with Bilbao was an anomaly as his next highest tally is actually with Leeds where he has managed 71 games.

However, the fact that he’s planning ahead to next season indicates that he may be planning on staying at Leeds, and if that hint is proven to be true that’s great news for the club given where he’s taken them.

The Whites were a club in mid-table mediocrity but now they sit comfortably in the automatic playoffs.

Meanwhile, one hurdle may be denying Leeds the chance to sign Matej Vydra, but they shouldn’t let that stop them.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Martin Keown has been speaking on talkSPORT about Arsenal manager Unai Emery and the expectations he faces.

What did he say?

Emery is a man under plenty of pressure regarding his job security, with many Arsenal fans wanting him out of their club.

The Gunners’ current run of five games without a win in all competitions has certainly not helped Emery garner support for his tenure.

There may be some people who feel sympathy for the Arsenal manager’s current situation, but Keown is not one of them, as he said on talkSPORT: “He’s just being reminded that if Arsenal don’t reach their objectives, which is to make it into the Champions League, then he’ll be without a job. That goes with the territory.

“Arsenal are striving to get back into the big time, to be in the running to win Premier League titles and to get into the Champions League, and it’s fallen by the wayside.

“Emery’s remit when he came in was to make Arsenal no longer a soft touch, to be more solid, to be stronger. But he’s been there 18 months now and the problems that were there before he came still exist.”

Meeting targets

Arsenal have failed to reach the top four in each of their last three campaigns, but Emery will be expected to change that due to the importance of Champions League football to the club.

When speaking with The Independent, Santi Cazorla had said: “He needs time, it’s a new generation and it’s very difficult to compete against teams like Man City and Liverpool.”

However, Keown, who represented Arsenal 393 times throughout his own playing career, has taken a far more ruthless approach in judging Emery’s job security.

The upcoming period will be vital for Emery if he is to keep his job, as the next four league games will see the Gunners come up against Southampton, Norwich City, Brighton & Hove Albion and West Ham United, who are all currently in the bottom half of the table.

With Arsenal already eight points off fourth place, they can’t afford to fall too much further behind if Emery is to keep the fledgling support he has.