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In recent years, Everton’s greatest transfer successes haven’t been from splashing big money on star signings, but instead from buying relatively cheap young players who will be worth several times what was spent on them within a few years.

The likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Seamus Coleman and Jarrad Branthwaite are great examples of this in the first-team.

The Toffees’ boss Sean Dyche is reportedly keen to follow a similar transfer model this month and is eyeing up one of the Championship’s most talented youngsters.

Everton transfer news – Tom Fellows

According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Everton are monitoring West Bromwich Albion’s attacking starlet Tom Fellows, who is out of contract in June. Romano is claiming that the prospective owner, 777 Partners, like the player and will look to make a move for his services before sending him back out on loan.

West Brom head coach Carlos Corberan handed the 20-year-old back-to-back starts in the Baggies’ last two matches for the first time this season and the youngster rewarded his manager’s faith by scoring his first goal of the season on Sunday as the Midlands club ran riot over non-league Aldershot Town.

Everton boss Dyche seems keen to add quality to his flanks this season, particularly over on the right, where Fellows prefers to play. The Merseyside outfit have also been linked with a move for Leeds United star Wilfried Gnonto, although the Italian attacker reportedly has a price tag of £30m on his head, while Fellows has a market value of just £516k – as per Transfermarkt.

Tom Fellows' stats this season

Incidentally, in a recent interview, former Baggies boss Steve Bruce predicted Fellows' rise at The Hawthorns, describing him as someone with "so much ability" and claiming that he would be a regular in the starting lineup by the end of the campaign.

Overall, Fellows has made 17 appearances for the Baggies this season, but has played just 502 minutes overall which comes to 29.5 minutes per game. Nevertheless, two starts from two could be a sign that Corberan believes Fellows can be more than a squad player.

Fellows is a right-winger, or right-midfielder depending on the formation. However, the ex-Crawley Town loanee has played in ten different positions throughout his career so far, dating back to the 2018/19 campaign with West Brom's U18s side.

Position

Appearances

Goals

Assists

Right Midfield

27

10

6

Right Wing

19

1

2

Left Midfield

8

0

2

Left Wing

6

1

3

Left-Back

5

1

0

Right-Back

5

0

1

Attacking Midfield

3

0

0

Centre-Forward

2

0

0

Central Midfield

1

0

0

Defensive Midfield

1

0

0

Stats via Transfermarkt

Furthermore, the West Brom academy product has been slightly more prolific this season than Gnonto. The Leeds star has the same number of goals and assists as Fellows, with one apiece, but has played 884 minutes in total and has made 22 appearances in all competitions, which is far more than his counterpart.

Fellows would suit the Premier League club much more than Gnonto based on the team's performances this season. Gnonto is primarily a left-winger or a centre-forward, while Fellows' preferred position is on the right – which is a weak area for the Toffees. Fellows has also been outperforming Gnonto statistically this season.

Goals

0.19

0.1

Expected Goals

0.01

0.05

Assists

0.19

0.1

Expected Assists

0.3

0.19

Progressive Carries

7.25

6.2

Crosses

6.15

4.02

Crosses To Penalty Area

1.75

0.38

Key Passes

1.75

0.76

Passes To Penalty Area

2.5

1.77

Stats via FBref

As of now, Everton's right flank could be up for grabs. Jack Harrison and Arnaut Danjuma have rotated the right-wing spot in the 2023/24 campaign, but the duo have managed to score just four goals and record merely three assists between them.

Additionally, both Danjuma and Harrison are only at Goodison Park on a loan basis, meaning they will be heading back to their parent clubs this summer. If Everton sign Fellows and send him back out on loan, the Englishman could be ready to return in six months and stake his claim to be Dyche's new right winger.

Sunday's draw against Sheffield United in the Premier League was characterised by a dearth of control, but the crux of West Ham United's season remains the need for a gleaming new centre-forward.

Danny Ings started at Bramall Lane and was lively in a deeper-lying role, making four key passes and providing a consistent outlet, but the 31-year-old is yet to score this term and has just three goals from 42 appearances for the Irons.

The other established frontman, Michail Antonio, 34 in three months, has been sidelined for over two months and is ostensibly declining. Edson Alvarez's absence in Sheffield proved decisive in the failure to win, but for the long-term fluency of a remarkable side, signing a striker must be David Moyes' priority.

West Ham's striker search

According to the Sun, West Ham are ready to smash their transfer record to sign Bayer Leverkusen talisman Victor Boniface, who has been in fine fettle for Xabi Alonso's Bundesliga-topping team this season.

Chelsea and Newcastle United are both interested but Moyes will hope that the promise of a leading role could tempt the Nigerian to move to east London this summer, with a winter transfer unlikely but being pushed by Hammers’ technical director Tim Steidten.

January transfer window: All the deadline day deals from England and Scotland

Stay on top of all the latest transfer deals across the Premier League, EFL and SPFL as the January window closes.

ByCharlie Smith Feb 1, 2024 How Victor Boniface compares to Darwin Nunez

Valued at £52m by CIES Football Observatory and contracted to the BayArena until 2028, it's safe to say that Leverkusen are in no haste to cash in.

The 23-year-old has scored 16 goals and supplied eight assists across 23 matches in all competitions this season, earning praise for his "monster" presence in the frontline by Molde assistant coach Trond Strande, signing him from Union Saint-Gilloise for €20m (£17m) plus add ons last summer.

Invariably menacing in the final third, the four-cap Nigeria international ranks among the top 7% of forwards across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for goals, the top 1% for assists, the top 12% for shot-creating actions, the top 5% for progressive carries and the top 3% for successful take-ons per 90, as per FBref.

With a hunger for goals and assists in their hordes, a fleet-footed gait and a tendency to drift in from the left, West Ham could finally land a striker of Darwin Nunez's mould, with the Liverpool star considered the 6 foot 2 Boniface's most comparable player of FBref.

In January 2022, six months before the Uruguayan signed for Liverpool in a club-record £85m deal, Moyes fought to land Nunez before the transfer deadline, sadly coming up fruitless after seeing a €45m (£37m) bid rejected.

Nunez has been a polarising figure in the Premier League, and while detractors cherish the wayward finishes and scorn the lapses of focus, the 24-year-old is one of the most dynamic and devastating players around.

Scoring twice against Bournemouth just hours after West Ham's contest against Sheffield United finished 2-2, Nunez has now taken his seasonal tally up to ten goals and ten assists apiece across the board, despite starting just 18 times.

The £140k-per-week phenom also ranks among the top 18% of forwards for goals, the top 5% for assists, the top 14% for shot-creating actions and the top 12% for progressive carries per 90.

Boniface, similarly, might cause frustration among Irons ranks at times, ranking among the top 1% of positional peers for shots taken per 90, but he offers something brilliant, intangible, in the attacking surges.

Goals, assists, disruption, despondency. Boniface unleashes mayhem as Nunez does and pocks the opposition goal with craters after barrage upon barrage of fire, also intelligent and selfless enough to know when to place a pass and provide for his teammates.

Nunez, too, boasts such qualities, more composed and economical in his overall play this season. West Ham might have failed to bring the Anfield talisman to the London Stadium but they could now find the missing piece to complete Moyes' team, with Boniface tailor-made to cause a stir in the Premier League.

Casemiro and Richarlison have both been dropped from Brazil's squad for the upcoming Copa America while wonderkid Endrick makes the cut.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

• Brazil reveal Copa America squad
• Big Premier League names dropped after poor campaign
• Tournament to take place in USA this summer

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Brazil announced their squad for the upcoming Copa America tournament and two household names from the Premier League were left out. Casemiro has 75 caps for his country while Richarlison was the hero during the World Cup in 2022 after scoring a famous bicycle kick against Serbia. Gabriel Jesus and Matheus Cunha were also dropped while Real Madrid-bound Endrick was handed a call-up after scoring against England earlier in the year.

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• FULL BRAZIL SQUAD

  Goalkeepers: Alisson, Ederson, Bento

  Defenders: Beraldo, Eder Militao, Gabriel, Marquinhos, Danilo, Yan Couto, Guilherme Aranal, Wendell

  Midfielders: Andreas Pereira, Bruno Guimaraes, Douglas Luiz, Joao Gomes, Lucas Paqueta

  Attackers: Endrick, Evanlison, Gabriel Martinelli, Raphinha, Rodrygo, Savinho, Vinicius Junior

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Head coach Dorival Junior has an abundance of talent to choose from when finalising his squad and he is opting to bed in a new generation of talent rather than stick with the country's reliable figures from past years. Endrick, Savinho and Beraldo are all under the age of 21 and only a select few are 30 or above, suggesting a new era is on the horizon for the South American side.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR BRAZIL?

  Brazil are looking to win the Copa America for the 10th time and the first time since 2019. They were runners-up in 2021, losing to Argentina 1-0 but have dominated the tournament since 1997, winning on five of the last 10 occasions. The final is set to take place at the Hard Rock Stadium in Florida on 14 July.

أصدر نادي برشلونة الإسباني بياناً رسمياً حول إصابة لاعبه، مارك بيرنال، خلال مواجهة رايو فاليكانو في منافسات الدوري الإسباني.

وتعرض بيرنال لإصابة قوية في الدقائق الأخيرة من مباراة رايو فاليكانو أمس في اللقاء الذي انتهى بنتيجة 2/1 للفريق الكتالوني.

اقرأ ايضاً.. رقم “13”.. برشلونة يُعلن رسميًا عن رحيل لاعب جديد

وأكد نادي برشلونة في بيان رسمي أنه يعاني مارك بيرنال من تمزق في الرباط الصليبي الأمامي في ركبته اليسرى وإصابة مرتبطة بالغضروف المفصلي الخارجي.

وأضاف النادي الكتالوني في البيان الرسمي له أنه في الأيام المقبلة سيخضع بيرنال للعلاج الجراحي.

وبحسب ما ورد في الصحف الإسبانية فإن مدة غياب بيرنال عن برشلونة ستكون ما بين 10-12 شهر بسبب الإصابة.

❗ COMUNICAT MÈDIC

ℹ Marc Bernal té una ruptura del lligament encreuat anterior del genoll esquerre i una lesió associada al menisc extern. Els propers dies se sotmetrà a tractament quirúrgic pic.twitter.com/4zv0B4jCs9 — FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_cat) August 28, 2024

Ireland’s series against Afghanistan has been pulled forward so that it wouldn’t clash with the IPL. Originally set to end on March 23 – which is the start date of the IPL – both boards have agreed to a slight change in schedule and now the tour, which includes three T20Is, five ODIs and the first Test between the two countries, will start on February 21 and end on March 19.

Fixtures

T20Is: February 21, 23 and 24
ODIs: February 28, March 2, 5, 8 and 10
Only Test: March 15-19

Three of Afghanistan’s biggest match-winners are involved in the IPL – Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. And the tournament was forced to start sooner this year so that there would be some breathing room for the players before the World Cup starts in May 2019. The Afghanistan Cricket Board – who are hosting the series in the North Indian city of Dehradun – made the request to draw the matches forward and Cricket Ireland agreed.”Initially, we planned to conclude the series on 23rd March,” ACB CEO Shafiqullah Stanikzai said, “But keeping in mind the dates of the Indian Premier League, in which three of Afghanistan’s main players will be participating, the dates were slightly adjusted and I would like to thank Cricket Ireland for honoring our request. The series will be important for Afghanistan as we are in the preparation stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 and we are certain that both sides will play competitive cricket.”Warren Deutrom, the CEO of Cricket Ireland, echoed similar views. “The importance of this series to both nations cannot be understated, so it was important that we could ensure the fans did not miss out on a clash that will see best v best in terms of players available. We hope this slight amendment to playing days does not impact too much on the travel bookings of any fans attending the series. We look forward to a great series – which will include Ireland’s first overseas Test match.”Ireland’s first and only foray in the longest format came at home, against Pakistan in May last year, while Afghanistan played their inaugural Test against India a month later in Bengaluru. For the forthcoming tour, the Irish side is scheduled to arrive in India on February 18. All matches will be played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, where Afghanistan played hosts to Bangladesh for a three-match T20I series in June 2018.

Harris will serve as the team’s bowling coach, while McMillan has been hired as a fielding coach

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Dec-2018Kings XI Punjab have appointed Ryan Harris, the former Australia quick, as the bowling coach for the 2019 IPL season. Harris replaces Venkatesh Prasad, who was in the position last year but resigned recently. Harris was the head coach of the Australia Under-19, who were runner-ups in the World Cup earlier this year.Kings XI, who finished seventh last season, also roped in former New Zealand batsman Craig McMillan as a fielding coach. McMillan, who is also the batting coach of New Zealand, is currently in the UAE for the ongoing Test series against Pakistan.”Having quality coaches like Harris and McMillan will be a great asset to the team,” Mike Hesson, who recently took over as head coach, said. “They have both performed as players on the big stage and have made the transition into quality coaches. They will be excellent additions to the coaching team.”The other appointments by made the franchise to bolster the support staff were that of Brett Harrop (physio), Sridharan Sriram (batting coach) and Prasanna Raman (high-performance coach).Apart from the ouster of former head coach Brad Hodge and Virender Sehwag, who was the tean Mentor and Head of Cricket Operations, Kings XI released eleven players, including Yuvraj Singh, Aaron Finch and Axar Patel, and traded Marcus Stoinis for Royal Challenger Bangalore’s Mandeep Singh. That has left them with the highest salary cap (INR 36.20 crores) among all franchises ahead of the auction.

After suffering the heartbreak of Premier League relegation, Leeds United were forced to bid farewell to a number of players in the summer transfer window, giving new manager Daniel Farke an immediate headache at the start of his tenure.

The former Norwich boss recruited well, however, alongside new owners the 49ers Enterprises, and the Whites are now in the race for automatic promotion alongside Ipswich Town and Leicester City.

Farke's attention may soon turn towards the January transfer window and keeping hold of the new stars that have emerged this season at Elland Road. The last thing he'll want is to do is lose players once again in what would be a major dent in his side's Championship promotion push. And reports suggest that the manager is set to get his wish when it comes to keeping one particular player, too.

Leeds United transfer news

Whilst exits took place during the summer, they did at least give Farke the opportunity to discover new options at Elland Road, whether through the market or the academy. And that includes Archie Gray, who has emerged as one of Leeds' standout stars this season. The teenager has taken his opportunity incredibly well and has quickly become an important part of Farke's side – so much so that the Whites may face a battle to keep hold of him.

Phil Hay shares off-field Leeds agreement from Elland Road

Good news for Leeds fans…

ByTom Cunningham Nov 24, 2023

According to Football Insider, Leeds and the 49ers are set to reject offers for Gray during the January transfer window and are adamant that he'll be staying at the club amid reported interest from Liverpool, Everton and Crystal Palace. The midfielder's current deal runs out in 2025, which hands Leeds a fairly urgent task when it comes to securing his future in Yorkshire, and talks are thought to be in the works over a new contract.

"Fantastic" Gray has become key for Farke

Gray's stats this season show just how important he's been for Leeds. The 17-year-old has started plenty of Championship games throughout the current campaign, whether that be in midfield or at right-back, proving his versatility. Still so young, Gray is only likely to get even better, which is exciting for those at Elland Road.

Farke is certainly a fan too, speaking about Gray's ability to fill in at right-back, saying:

"For Archie, it's definitely not a bad choice at times. We don't play him there just to develop him, it's more we've got the feeling for this game, we need a player there who is capable to handle the pace and the speed and the mobility of the opponent's wingers.

"Also to play a bit more like an inverted full-back, a bit more like a traditional midfield player, Archie would have been the right choice. Thank God he repaid my trust and played some really good games there. He was fantastic in the last home game, solid last away game and he was crucial, especially in the second half."

حقق محمد السيد لاعب منتخب مصر لسلاح سيف المبارزة، أول ميدالية لبعثة مصر المشاركة في أولمبياد باريس 2024، أمس الأحد.

وفاز اللاعب محمد السيد برونزية منافسات سلاح المبارزة بالفوز على المجري تيبور أندراسفي، بنتيجة 8-7.

وتشارك مصر في أولمبياد باريس بـ148 لاعباً ولاعبة أساسيًا و16 لاعبًا احتياطيًا بإجمالي عدد لاعبين 164 لاعبًا في 22 رياضة، وتعد بعثة الفراعنة الأكبر في تاريخ العرب وإفريقيا.

طالع | نتائج مصر اليوم في أولمبياد باريس (مباشر).. ندى حافظ تُحقق إنجازًا في السلاح ووداع مُبكر في التجديف والسباحة

وعلى مدار تاريخ مصر الأولمبي شارك الفراعنة في 22 دورة أولمبية من أصل 32 دورة أولمبية تم تنظيمها وجاء ترتيب مصر الأولمبي 53 عالميا بناء على عدد الميداليات المحققة البالغة 39 ميدالية مقسمة إلى 8 ميداليات ذهبية و11 ميدالية فضية و20 ميدالية برونزية كالتالي: 14 ميدالية لرفع الأثقال، 8 ميداليات مصارعة، 4 ميداليات ملاكمة، 4 التايكوندو، 2 الجودو، 2 الغطس، 2 الكاراتيه، 2 السلاح، 1 الخماسي الحديث.

ويرصد موقع بطولات أبرز الأسماء المصرية المرشحة لحصد ميداليات في أولمبياد باريس 2024، المقامة خلال الفترة الحالية فيما يلي:

اتحاد المصارعة

يشارك الاتحاد المصري للمصارعة بـ 11 لاعبًا، ويتوقع حصد محمد إبراهيم “كيشو” في وزن 67 كجم ميدالية، كما يتوقع أن يتوج عبد اللطيف محمد منيع في وزن 130 كجم بميدالية هو الآخر.

اتحاد رفع الأثقال

يعود اتحاد رفع الأثقال للمشاركة في الأولمبياد بعد غياب عن النسخة الأخيرة، بسبب ايقاف المنشطات، ويتوقع حصد الاتحاد ميداليتين عن طريق كلاً من كريم كحلة في وزن 89 كجم، وسارة سمير في وزن 81 كجم

اتحاد الخماسي الحديث

يشارك الاتحاد المصري للخماسي الحديث بـ 4 لاعبين وهم مهند شعبان، أحمد الجندي، سلمي أيمن، وملك خالد، ويتوقع منافسة الثنائي أحمد أسامة الجندي ومهند شعبان على ميداليتين.

اتحاد السلاح

يشارك الاتحاد المصري للسلاح بـ 21 لاعبًا ولاعبة بواقع 16 لاعباً اساسيا و 5 لاعبين احتياطي، ويتوقع لمحمد ماهر حمزة لاعب سلاح الشيش حصد ميدالية في المنافسات التي تري اليوم الإثنين، كما يتوقع المنافسة على ميدالية لفريق سلاح السيف وفريق سلاح الشيش

طالع | رغم بيان “الأولمبية”.. عبد الرحمن طلبة يفوز على بطل المجر ويتأهل إلى دور الـ16 في أولمبياد باريس

الرماية

يشارك الاتحاد المصري للرماية بـ 11 لاعبًا ولاعبة

ويتوقع حصد عزمي محلبية، ميدالية لمصر في الأولمبياد بعد الأداء الكبير الذي يقدمه في منافسات الاسكيت.

India’s captain calls for Test team to hit the ground running in future series, rather than ease into a tour as it develops

Nagraj Gollapudi at The Oval11-Sep-20181:43

Did think about a win at tea – Kohli

India captain Virat Kohli has admitted that until and unless his team starts “capitalising” on important moments in matches where they have created pressure, and sustain it, they will not win Test series overseas.And the only way to create pressure, Kohli emphasised, was by starting a series well and not “warming up”, as India did after losing the winning advantage at Edgbaston on the fifth morning of the first Test, which they lost by 31 runs.”We need to start series well, we can’t warm up in to a series because the first Test is always crucial, and we need to make sure we are in the right frame of mind to be able to do all the things right to strike first,” Kohli said in the wake of his team’s 4-1 series defeat at The Oval.India, the No. 1-ranked Test team, had arrived with many pundits predicting their best showing in England in a decade, and with Kohli himself saying that his squad had the right balance compared to the previous touring teams lead by MS Dhoni, in 2011 and 2014, when India lost the series by 4-0 and 3-1 margins. Yet, India managed to win one Test this time too, the third in Nottingham, where a collective effort across all three departments enabled them to stay in the series after consecutive defeats at Edgbaston and Lord’s.Kohli said India did not sustain that kind of effort and pressure, and that is how England snatched the control of the series quickly. “We do not look at this series as something that makes us think we can’t play in overseas conditions. Of course, we can play, but can we capitalise on the important moments better than the opposition? At the moment, no, we haven’t done that.”But in the future we want to do that, and, that is the only way we win series, and our aim is to win series, not to win the odd Test match and be happy about it.”According to Kohli the only reason he was feeling not “hard-done by”, despite a one-sided scoreline, was because of the attitude with which his team played throughout the five Tests.”We are definitely not happy about the way the series has gone, but the way we played our cricket is something that, not me, no-one in the change room, no-one doubts even one percent, because we played with the right attitude and the will to win every game that we played.”Rishabh Pant brings up his maiden Test hundred with a six•Getty Images

As an example he pointed out the final day’s play of the series at The Oval where India were staring at a mammoth target of 464. Kohli, for a first-ball duck, was one of the three Indian wickets to fall on the fourth evening.England already had more than a foot through the door. But KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant, two of the highest scorers in the last IPL, played aggressively on a slow and flat pitch to create a contest after a wicketless second session. Both Rahul and Pant would end up making centuries.More than the runs, Kohli said, it was the boldness and the situational awareness that gave him hope for future series. “Not hard [done-by] at all because what matters to me is the kind of attitude you play cricket with,” he said. “We said at the end of the fourth game that we won’t throw in the towel and we didn’t.”We were a bowler short [Ishant Sharma retired with a sore ankle on the fourth morning] in the second innings as well, but even then the batsmen came out and played liked that. A lot of teams in the past basically have given up, but we did not. And this kind of series shows you exactly the kind of character of individuals are, and I see that as an opportunity and not adversity because if you keep winning all the time, a lot of faults are swept under the carpet, you don’t realise the faults you need to work on and I certainly haven’t played my cricket like that.”Despite the steep target, Kohli said that on Tuesday morning the focus of the batting unit was to play with an attitude that would create good memories. And that is exactly what Rahul and Pant did, he added.”The one thing that we spoke about was how we react to the fifth day’s play is going to determine a lot of what happens in the future for all of us,” he said. “It is very easy to surrender and say it is too difficult or we might not be able to do this. But if you show the right attitude then, throughout your career, you will have more good memories than bad and the game will give you back because you are respecting the game and playing in the right manner.”Guys like KL [Rahul], who hadn’t had a great run, but still goes and plays like that. Guys want to take up their responsibility and want to be in the fight. Rishabh was doubtful after a few innings and then he comes and plays like that as well. I mean that partnership was something like a great show of character.”Kohli said that going for the win became a possibility at the start of the final session, as long as Rahul and Pant were at the crease with the target under 100. But, the mere fact that they were even thinking that way proved the courage and heart of his batsmen.”Not many people will realise it but they look at it as if we might not have been interested or might not have had motivation, but that wasn’t the case, clearly, because they were going for the win and these guys just batted really well. All credit to them that they played the game with the right attitude, and they respected the game totally.”

Leeds United brought in Daniel Farke to be their new manager after the club were relegated from the Premier League at the end of last season.

The Whites opted to back the German head coach in the transfer market as he was able to bolster his squad with a host of new signings.

Joel Piroe, Karl Darlow, Djed Spence, Ilia Gruev, Joe Rodon, Jaidon Anthony, Ethan Ampadu, Glen Kamara, and Sam Byram were all signed either on loan or on a permanent basis.

Those additions have played a part in Leeds' strong start to the 2023/24 Championship campaign as Farke has managed to excite supporters with his attacking brand of football.

The Yorkshire-based outfit are third in the table and six points off the automatic promotion places, with 20 goals scored in their opening 12 matches.

However, their most recent win – against Norwich City – provided Farke with another reminder of why he wanted to sign Kenny McLean, who has outperformed Kamara this term, during the summer transfer window.

Were Leeds interested in McLean?

Sky Sports reported (28/08/2023) that the Whites had an offer of £4m turned down by the Canaries as the German tactician attempted to secure a reunion with his former midfielder.

The Scotland international then revealed that the interest was 'put to bed' quickly and that he wants to be part of a third promotion to the Premier League with Norwich.

Shortly after Leeds' failed pursuit of his services, McLean put pen to paper on a contract extension at Carrow Road. His new deal is due to expire at the end of the 2025/26 season, with the option to extend it a further 12 months.

However, the Yellows have lost five of their last seven games in all competitions and Farke could look to test his former club's resolve again during the January window.

If Norwich's form does not improve then a promotion tilt could be out of the question and that could place McLean's future in doubt if Leeds remain on current form and are able to offer a realistic chance of promotion back to the Premier League.

Why were Leeds interested in McLean?

The £25k-per-week maestro played 114 matches in all competitions in four seasons under Farke's management during their time together in Norfolk.

This shows that the German boss relied upon the central midfielder as he was a regular fixture in his team, which led to the ex-Borussia Monchengladbach boss dubbing him as "irreplaceable".

McLean won two Championship titles with the Leeds manager and started 45 league matches across those two campaigns, which came in 2018/19 and 2020/21.

Appearances

105

Goals

Six

Assists

15

Promotions

Two

This shows that the former Aberdeen star knows what it takes to get promoted from this level and, crucially, is able to excel within Farke's system and would be able to hit the ground running as he already knows the division and what the manager wants from him in his position.

His quality in the Championship was on full display at Carrow Road on Saturday as the Scotsman outperformed Kamara in the middle of the park.

How did McLean perform against Leeds?

The 31-year-old ace caught the eye with a fantastic display against Farke's side over the weekend as he showcased his ability in and out of possession.

Norwich's captain anchored the midfield for David Wagner and his defensive presence allowed the impressive Gabriel Sara to venture forward and trouble Leeds, which led to a goal and an assist from the Brazilian whiz.

As per Sofascore, McLean ended the match with seven tackles, two interceptions, and two clearances for his side. No other midfielder on the pitch, for either team, made more than seven combined tackles and interceptions throughout the game.

The left-footed ace also created one chance and completed 82% of his attempted passes, which included six of his ten long pass attempts, as he displayed his quality on the ball.

These contributions earned him a Sofascore rating of 7.6, which was the fourth-highest of the match – behind Georgino Rutter (7.8), Sara (8.6), and Crysencio Summerville (9.4).

How did Glen Kamara perform against Norwich?

Kamara, on the other hand, recorded a Sofascore rating of 6.7 for his display against the Canaries as the summer signing from Rangers struggled to impress as much as the Norwich star.

The Finland international played 70 minutes and was substituted with the score at 2-1 to the Yellows as he failed to make a significant impact at either end of the pitch.

As per Sofascore, the central midfielder only won three duels – in comparison to McLean's 13 – and made one tackle and zero interceptions or clearances during his time on the pitch.

Kamara did complete 92% of his attempted passes but only two of them were long pass attempts. He also wasted a 'big chance' in front of goal as Rutter played him through only for the ex-Gers star to blaze wide of the post from the right side of the box.

These statistics show that the Finnish gem, who was beaten far too easily by Sara for Norwich's second goal, was outperformed by McLean on Saturday.

Should Leeds sign McLean?

Farke must now reignite his interest in the Canaries skipper as his performances, including the one at the weekend, have been more impressive than Kamara's at this level throughout the 2023/24 campaign.

Kamara has played six times for the Whites this term and averaged 1.3 tackles and interceptions along with 1.3 ball recoveries per match and a duel success rate of 56% for his side, as per Sofascore.

McLean, on the other hand, has started all 12 of Norwich's games and caught the eye with his defensive presence in the middle of the park.

The experienced Scotsman has made 3.7 tackles and interceptions alongside 7.5 ball recoveries per outing, with a duel success rate of 66%, as per Sofascore.

These statistics suggest that McLean could be a big upgrade on Kamara due to his superior work out of possession, alongside his pre-existing knowledge of what Farke wants his midfielders to do on the ball.

Therefore, Leeds should attempt to snap the Scotland international up from Norwich during the January transfer window if the Canaries slip away from the promotion race.