There are four games still to play in their 2022/23 Premier League season and Leeds United’s immediate top-flight future hangs in the balance, and it’s perhaps with that in mind that Europe’s big boys are sniffing around the Elland Road outfit.
Currently on 30 points and only out of the relegation zone on goal difference, Sam Allardyce has the most difficult task imaginable with his side having to get something from the Man City, Newcastle, West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur games to guarantee they won’t drop into the Championship.
The previous appointment of Javi Gracia by the club’s hierarchy has proven to be nothing short of a disaster, and the board should be given some credit for making a last-ditch attempt to preserve their current status.
Allardyce isn’t to everyone’s taste, but if he manages to get the job done, then arguably no one will care about this ‘long ball’ reputation.
One player who should be delighted by ‘Big Sam’s’ presence is Wilfried Gnonto.
The exciting striker barely got the chance to make a difference under Gracia, and Allardyce should be in a position to wipe the slate clean for every player and pick his four starting XIs on merit.
If he’s able to pull off the near impossible and keep Leeds in the English top-flight for another 12 months at least, he’ll surely have more sway in trying to ensure that the club keep hold of talented players such as Gnonto.
He may even have his work cut out in that regard too, given that PSG appear to be one of a raft of clubs after his signature.
“The main worry is Gnonto because there is no way he can be playing in a lower division next season,” respected journalist, Dean Jones, told Give Me Sport.
“This is a player that could be heading to the Champions League while his teammates are down in the Championship.
“Earlier in the campaign he started to establish himself at this level and I know a lot of scouts have been surprised at how he has not been affected by the pressures of the Premier League.
“I know Chelsea have been linked and I don’t have too much information on there being progress with that but I do think Arsenal have half an eye on how Leeds’ season plays out because he could give them an edge if he looks to move clubs but stay in England.
“Beyond that there will be so many options on the continent, I’m already hearing about clubs like Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund having an eye on this.”