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Swansea City cannot allow their recent disappointment against Birmingham City play on their minds for too long, as they are back in action again on Easter Monday, as they take on Preston North End at the Liberty Stadium.

Steve Cooper’s side have seen their automatic promotion hopes take a huge blow in recent weeks, as they have fallen to three consecutive defeats against Bournemouth, Cardiff City and Birmingham, with Scott Hogan’s injury-time penalty on Friday sealing the three points for Lee Bowyer’s side last time out.

With plenty of Swansea’s players having only just returned from the international break before the trip to St Andrew’s, Cooper may well be forced into changes against the managerless visitors.

Here’s how we think Cooper will set his side up against Preston on Monday, with three changes from the side that started against Birmingham…

Freddie Woodman keeps his place in goal after saving one of the two penalties Swansea conceded in the defeat on Friday.

However, there are two changes in the defence, as Ben Cabango comes back in at centre-back in place of Connor Roberts, with Kyle Naughton pushing on from his usual centre-back position to play as a right wing-back. His Welsh teammate having been poor in recent fixtures.

Ryan Manning also comes in at left wing-back in place of Jake Bidwell to give Cooper’s side some more energy down the left.

In the likely absence of Conor Hourihane, who missed the Good Friday encounter, the midfield trio of Jay Fulton, Matt Grimes and Korey Smith stays the same.

It means Yan Dhanda remains on the bench after enduring a pretty horrific few minutes on the pitch at St Andrew’s, as he clumsily gave away the late penalty.

[freshpress-quiz id=“532484″]

Finally, there’s one change upfront, as 20-year-old gem Morgan Whittaker deserves a chance to start especially after an impressive performance against Bournemouth recently, with Jamal Lowe dropped as his goal drought continues.

He’ll join Andre Ayew in a two-pronged attack.

And, in other news… Lost possession 23x: Shocking Swansea lightweight cost Cooper with another awful display

Leeds United must reignite their pursuit of Rangers winger Ryan Kent in this upcoming summer transfer window.

What’s the story?

It was confirmed last summer by Gers boss Steven Gerrard that the Premier League side had a bid rejected by the Ibrox outfit, and that Leeds’ initial bid was nowhere near their valuation.

While a deal failed to materialise before the end of the transfer deadline, former Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips has now suggested that, with Rangers’ title success this season, Leeds may be back in for the £20,000-a-week ace this time around.

Speaking to Football Insider, Phillips 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.”

Imagine him and Raphinha

One of the shining lights of Leeds’ return to the Premier League has been Raphinha, with the Brazilian lighting up Elland Road with a series of eye-catching displays in his debut campaign in English football – he’s already managed six goals and five assists in the top flight alone.

The winger has been a real livewire down the flank, but one thing Marcelo Bielsa could surely do with is having someone similarly as explosive and exciting on the opposite wing, especially with question marks over the form of Helder Costa and Jack Harrison.

In Kent, Leeds could find exactly that.

Neil Dewsnip, his former coach at England under-17 level, said: “What he was, is what he still is. Very attack-minded, aggressive with the ball running at people, very effective cutting in onto his right foot. Although he was a late developer physically, he had great balance and co-ordination to go past players, so those skills were already embedded from an early age. What he’s done is add a bit of power to that.”He seems to relish the atmosphere, so I think he’s in the bracket of players who think ‘the bigger the better’. Ryan is very exciting so, when he’s good he’s devastatingly good. But that’s a trait of a lot of wide players. The challenge is to be consistent and I’m sure that’s what Steven and his staff will be working to achieve.”With a truly impressive total of 11 goals and 13 assists in all competitions this season for the Gers, Kent has been a real success for Gerrard’s men as they wrestled the league title away from Celtic.If Leeds are looking for someone who like Raphinha, is as exciting as they come but also has a real end product to his game, then they should look no further than going after Kent once again this summer.

Meanwhile, Leeds could find a Pablo Hernandez replacement in this ace…

From a defensive point of view, this season has been difficult for Leeds United.

It has often been a tale of whether the Whites can outscore their opponents. In the final third, they are swashbuckling and relentless in their approach. Very often do they come out second best, unless they’re left open at the back.

It’s unsurprising that’s been the case though when you consider some of the injury problems they’ve had. Liam Cooper missed the first few weeks of the season while Diego Llorente has been largely anonymous for the first five months of his Leeds career.

Robin Koch has also missed a large portion of the campaign through injury.

With that in mind, it’s rather amazing to see them occupy a place just outside the Premier League’s top ten.

Bielsa has patched together his backline and they have still managed to gain results. Llorente is now back fit and his influence in the middle of the defence is proving invaluable.

The Spaniard made his debut in a 3-1 defeat against Chelsea but after missing six matches prior to that with a groin problem, would then sit out a further half a dozen outings with the same injury.

Llorente would play ten minutes against Newcastle in January before being absent for another four games; this time because of a hamstring problem. Since then, however, Llorente has played four consecutive 90 minutes.

Very quickly, we’re starting to see why Victor Orta put in so much effort to bring him to Elland Road.

Signed from Real Sociedad last summer for £18m, this addition was a bit of a coup given his status in La Liga. He was a Spain international trading European football for a potential relegation battle.

Indeed, he must have been left wondering what on Earth he’d done after playing just twice before the New Year period. Though, with Leeds in 12th place and Llorente now proving so important, he is beginning to pay back his fee.

In the summer months, Orta had a few options. Koch was one, but there were failed attempts to sign both Ben White and Josko Gvardiol. After last season’s performances, White would have been the cherry on top of the cake.

Though, after missing out on him, Llorente was the next best thing. His performances of late are finally proving why this is a dream deal for Leeds.

Despite conceding against Aston Villa, he was imperious, fending off Ollie Watkins and regularly stopping the Villans in their tracks by intercepting the passing lanes. The £52k-per-week earner made four tackles during that game but arguably saved his best performance for Chelsea last Saturday.

The 27-year-old was a force to be reckoned with, winning 100% of his ground duels and completing 81% of his passes in the process. It was a performance that Phil Hay rightfully described as “impressive.”

Since Llorente came back into the side, Leeds have kept two clean sheets; something that’s a bit of a rarity this term. Although Bielsa will be pleased with his defensive capabilities, it’s the Spaniard’s ability to drive the team forward that stands out.

Like White, the centre-back is capable of picking out a pass and dribbling out from the back. With that in mind, he is the perfect Bielsa player.

He has missed much of the season but in double-quick time he has now shown what an impressive capture he was. The £18m they paid is beginning to look like very shrewd business.

AND in other news, Leeds have their perfect Pablo heir in rarely-seen 19 y/o, he’s a “great talent”…

Leeds United face their second test in the space of 96 hours on Tuesday night and they could use all the squad depth they can get, but Diego Llorente is still a doubt to make a return following his injury.

The latest on Llorente

The Spaniard has been trying to recover from a hamstring injury, but Sky Sports believe that although the defender is closing in on a return, Tuesday’s game comes too soon.

This will be frustrating for Bielsa and Leeds

The defender, who is valued at £18m on Transfermarkt, will be wanting to make his return as soon as possible, but you cannot afford to rush a hamstring injury. He has been on the sidelines for a while now and has only made two appearances in the division since joining because of his struggles.

Described as “fantastic”and as a “top player” in the past, supporters of the club should be excited to hear that he will be available in the near future, however to have such a player unavailable will be frustrating, especially when the club are trying to halt a two-game losing skid.

The good thing for Marcelo Bielsa is that he can use the same pairing that he used against Wolves with Luke Cooper and Pascal Struijk available to play for him at the back, but the Argentinian will definitely be wanting his depth back in the centre of defence as soon as possible with the games coming thick and fast.

In other news, a former Premier League star has tipped one player to be playing in the Euro’s!

Kiko Casilla’s Leeds United career will come to an end in the near future, according to The Athletic’s Phil Hay.

The 34-year-old made the move to Elland Road back in January 2019, joining from Real Madrid after winning three Champions League crowns with the La Liga giants.

Casilla was a key man during last season’s glorious Championship triumph, starting 36 of Leeds’ 46 league games as the Whites made it back into the Premier League.

The veteran goalkeeper has been far more of a peripheral figure in 2020/21, however, starting only once in the league and playing second fiddle to Illan Meslier.

Hay claims Casilla’s time at Leeds is up

This lack of playing time has raised question marks over Casilla’s long-term future and the reliable Hay believes his time at Elland Road is almost up.

Speaking on the The Phil Hay Show podcast [via MOT Leeds News], the journalist revealed that Leeds will look to replace him in the summer:

“He [Bielsa] was clear on Monday there was no injury to Casilla and that it was a tactical move for want of a better move.

“What it meant is that you had a goalkeeper in Meslier starting who is 21 and you had a keeper on the bench, Elia Caprile, who isn’t even 20 yet. That combination is very rare to see two keepers with such little experience.

“I think it’s been over for Casilla here in real terms since the FA charge and the suspension. My understanding is that he is a player they are thinking of trying to move on this summer. He is a player they would like to replace.

“Casilla was on a very high Championship wage and he would have got an uplift with promotion. It’s not a straightforward move.

“I have never got the impression that Casilla has enjoyed the last year and has found it very difficult, he’s found the tension and the criticism of him hard to handle.”

Transfer Tavern take

It makes perfect sense for Casilla to move on to pastures new this summer, considering Meslier and now even arguably Elia Caprile are ahead of him in the goalkeeping pecking order, after they were named as the ‘keepers in the matchday squad to face West Ham.

He is still at an age where he could be a regular elsewhere, but it seems clear that Marcelo Bielsa is preparing for life without the Spaniard.

In other news, Noel Whelan has slammed one Leeds player’s performance against West Ham. Read about it here.

Jose Mourinho will be looking to see a reaction from his Spurs side this evening as they welcome London rivals Chelsea to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

They have now lost back-to-back matches in the Premier League which has put the chances of making the top four this season in serious jeopardy. It has left the north Londoners some seven points adrift, prior to tonight’s kickoff.

After an embarrassing no-show against defending champions Liverpool and an equally poor display at Brighton, it would be a surprise if the ‘Special One’ didn’t make some serious changes to his struggling squad.

And one player he has often trusted is surely in line to face the wrath of his axe…

On the Chalkboard

Indeed, Moussa Sissoko has been a regular for Mourinho this season having started 13 of his 16 league appearances, and in the early part of the campaign,  he formed a formidable partnership with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

But things have changed in recent weeks.

The Frenchman, who reportedly earns a whopping £90k-per-week in N17, has been holding the side back with underwhelming and disappointing displays.

In some ways, it is not entirely his fault as he’s been deployed at right wing, right wing-back and right-back but that only bolsters the argument to why he should be dropped with the Blues in town.

No more square pegs in round holes.

If there’s no place for him, then he shouldn’t start – not that his form, even in the heart of midfield, has been at all groundbreaking.

Since the start of December, Sissoko has only managed a WhoScored rating above 7.00 once and has dropped disasterclasses against Leicester City (6.11), Liverpool (6.5) and Chelsea (6.28).

In terms of other central options, he ranks behind both Hojbjerg and Tanguy Ndombele for average rating this term, whilst his output both defensively and in attack is rather sub-par.

He ranks as the worst midfielder for creative influence, managing only 0.2 key passes per 90 and 12 other Spurs players manage more than his 1.6 successful tackles per 90, via WhoScored.

At times, the £16.2m-rated ace is a bit of a nothing player – a passenger, as evident above.

Clearly, Mourinho does fancy Sissoko given his unrelenting faith to fit him into the starting XI at all costs, but it’s time to be ruthless tonight. The Spurs boss can do everyone a favour and drop him from the lineup.

AND in other news, Forget Parrott: Spurs could unearth their next Kane in prodigy who has “a big future”…

With the games coming thick and fast in the Premier League now for Aston Villa, Dean Smith will undoubtedly be looking for ways to keep things fresh for his side.

Wednesday night’s clash against West Ham in the Premier League will be Villa’s third game in the space of a week, and that will take its toll, both physically and mentally on the players.

One man who Smith should start tonight to try and inject that extra bit of energy is Anwar El Ghazi.

The Dutchman has found himself out of the side in recent weeks, with summer signing Bertrand Traore getting a consistent run of games in the starting eleven after being slowed ease into the Premier League by Smith.

But whenever El Ghazi has had a run of games himself, he’s impressed no end. He had a prolific spell in December when he went on goal-scoring spree, bagging five goals in the space of five league games.

And, speaking after his goal against Crystal Palace during that run, former Premier League ace Michael Brown said: “Dean Smith told me his training in how he executes those finishes is there for all to see. Craig Shakespeare then backed him straight up when I ran into him later, he just said ‘what a technician he is.’

“He’s practising in training, he has a bad week against Burnley: eight shots, great chances, can’t put one away. Then he scores against West Brom, then goes and puts one in the top bins like he did last night… Magnificent is the word we’re all looking for.”

The £7.2m-rated El Ghazi could come into the side tonight and bring some fresh legs, and ensure Villa don’t get burnout. The Dutchman is the club’s third top-scorer this season, behind only Ollie Watkins and Jack Grealish, and his underlying stats make for impressive reading.

He ranks fourth in the entire squad for shots per game, and second in dribbles, with only Jack Grealish above of him in that respect, and is a real testament to how he’s always tried to make things happen whenever he’s been afforded the chance to play.

Traore hasn’t come close to matching El Ghazi’s end product just yet, and he should be making way for the 25-year-old against the Hammers. He could well be the man to turn things in Villa’s favour when David Moyes’ side come to visit.

Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey has discussed whether Tyrone Mings deserved to get sent off during Aston Villa’s recent win over Crystal Palace.

Dean Smith’s men did pick up three points from the game despite Mings’ sending off. Goals from Bertrand Traore, Anwar El Ghazi and Kortney Hause helped Villa get the win. Mings picked up one yellow card for a clash with Wilfried Zaha and then picked up a second yellow for a holding offence on the same player (as per BBC Sport).

Smith’s side were 1-0 up when Mings was sent off but despite the numbers disadvantage, they still managed to win the game 3-0.

Halsey criticises Mings’ reaction

Halsey, whilst talking exclusively to The Transfer Tavern spoke about whether Mings deserved to get sent off. The former referee believes that Mings was ‘silly’ to get involved with Zaha and the Englishman had himself to blame for the sending off, although he did say that Zaha was clever in drawing the two yellow cards.

Halsey said:

“I think Mings has got himself to blame in that situation. I mean, everyone knows what Zaha is like, he’s got a short fuse, we all know that. So why does Mings get involved? Mings did show a little bit of petulance by sort of coming down hard on him on the back of his leg or the back of his hamstring and there was no need to do that.

On the second one, Mings has given Anthony Taylor nowhere to go for a second caution for a holding offence. Zaha knew exactly what he was doing and as I said, Mings was silly, you know, he was silly, and he’s got no complaints.”

The 27-year-old Mings has made 13 Premier League appearances this season and it was his first sending off of the campaign. He has racked up a good rating of 6.89 in the league (As per Whoscored).

Mings’ suspension can hurt Villa

Because of Mings’ sending off, the defender will be suspended for Villa’s Premier League game against Chelsea later today and considering his performances in the current campaign, he could be a very big miss for Smith’s men.

Villa are currently as high as seventh in the Premier League table and they are only three points behind third-placed Leicester City. They even have two games in hand on three on Leicester, Everton, Tottenham and Liverpool (as per BBC Sport).

This suggests that Villa are in an advantageous position in the table because of the games in hand but Mings’ absence might prove costly against Chelsea, who are level on points with Smith’s men as things stand.

According to The Athletic’s Jordan Campbell, Kai Kennedy is ‘close’ to agreeing a new contract with Glasgow Rangers.

What’s the word?

Kennedy impressed on loan with Inverness Caledonian Thistle during the first half of this season, scoring one goal and supplying one assist for John Robertson’s side, including an assist against Raith Rovers in the Scottish League Cup.

Since Steven Gerrard officially took charge of the 54-time Scottish champions, the 18-year-old has struck one goal and six assists across all competitions, via Transfermarkt.

However, his progress has been somewhat limited after a public spat with the Ibrox boss, but it appears Gerrard has changed his mind having previously given the green light for the teenager, 18, to leave the club last July.

Statement of intent

Reports in recent months revealed European heavyweights Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Roma were lining up a potential swoop for Kennedy, which would no doubt have been tempting prospects for the left-winger.

But it seems Kennedy has finally managed to convince his boyhood club he is worth keeping and now Ross Wilson must recognise that he needs rewarding for the show of faith he has shown this season.

The Light Blues boss heaped praise on the “fabulous little player” after some “outstanding” performances two years ago, but he has found his chances hard to come by since then.

If the Gers can persuade Kennedy that he may be best served by staying at Ibrox, then that in itself would be quite a significant coup for Gerrard in the winter transfer market.

With Ryan Kent linked with Leeds United in the summer, there may soon come a point where the Govan-based Glaswegian giants may need a proven number eleven to lead the attack. Granted, he’s not quite there yet, but he’s starting to show promising signs of being precisely just that.

It will be a bitter blow for the Ibrox boss if they can’t tie him down to a new long-term deal and a top European club seizes the chance to snap him up instead – just like what happened with now-Chelsea star Billy Gilmour. This simply must be one of Wilson’s top priorities – failure to do so is surely out of the question.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Dean Windass questions Rangers interest in John Lundstram…

Once the January transfer window arrives, Celtic will need some new signings.11 points behind Rangers and out of the Europa League, it’s been a disastrous campaign for Neil Lennon.Fortunately, though, it looks as though they have one confirmed target lined up.

What’s the word?

If Celtic are going to make additions this winter then it’ll presumably be in defence. Kristoffer Ajer is currently being linked with AC Milan while it’s thought that Shane Duffy will head back to Brighton once January rolls around.

With that in mind, a new centre-back could walk through the Lennoxtown doors.

That happens to be Philadelphia Union defender Mark McKenzie. Celtic were tracking the American in the summer but were waved away by Ernst Tanner, Philadelphia’s chief.

“We have had interest. There was a talk with Celtic, but I told them: We were not willing to talk before the [MLS in Back] tournament or during the tournament, but maybe then later on,” he said in August.

However, it’s now materialised that the Hoops then later made a bid for his services.

That’s come to light thanks to US journalist Kristian Dyer on Twitter. He said this week:

In English money, the $4m equates to around £3m.

Bye-bye Ajer

Before anything happens, Celtic will need to raise some additional funds. It was reported recently that Nick Hammond may have to sell one of his team’s star men because of a £13m drop in turnover.

Thus, if you consider the Glaswegian’s sloppy defensive record, Ajer should be one of the first out the door. He has been part of a terrible back four, one that’s conceded ten more goals than Rangers in the SPFL – that’s despite playing two fewer games.

With a move for McKenzie in the pipeline, now seems like an ideal time to move the Norwegian on.

After all, Celtic’s transfer target is one of the best young defenders in MLS right now.

Speaking about the American in 2019, the player’s former coach Tab Ramos revealed: “Mark is a natural leader. First of all, he’s a hard player on the field and he’s a good player. Secondly, he has that charisma off the field that allows for him to have a voice and for people to follow that voice.”

What Celtic need right now is someone who directs the defence, something that clearly isn’t there at the moment judging by the number of goals they concede. No one is taking responsibility and leading the rest of the defence in certain situations.

McKenzie, however, has proven he can do that at Philadelphia. The 21-year-old has registered an eye-catching pass success rate of 83.5% this season, as well as amassing 3.2 clearances per game.

Celtic need to sign him, if not for his physical qualities then definitely for his leadership.

In other news, one Celtic man failed his BIG audition on Thursday night…