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The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece has dropped a major update on Frederic Guilbert’s future at Aston Villa this summer.

What’s the story?

After falling behind Matty Cash in the pecking order following the right-back’s arrival from Championship side Nottingham Forest last summer, Guilbert eventually ended up joining Ligue 1 outfit Strasbourg on loan until the end of the season.

Now, Preece has claimed that while the Frenchman will return to Villa Park, and is “expected to stay”, he could be someone who actually ends up leaving if a team can offer him genuine first-team football.

He said: “The full-back situation is an intriguing one knowing Matt Targett doesn’t have competition at left-back while, over on the opposite flank, Frederic Guilbert will return to Villa to rival Cash. Guilbert, although expected to stay, could viably move on should an interested club guarantee him first-team football after his impressive four-month stint on-loan at Strasbourg.”

Villa must sell him

With just two Villa appearances to his name last season, it’s fair to say Guilbert has been a bit of a disaster at Villa Park over these past 12 to 18 months, so much so that he made the loan move to Strasbourg.

There, the 26-year-old became a regular, and put in some decent performances, scoring once and providing four assists in 13 Ligue 1 games.

But while Guilbert showed some impressive signs of a return to form, it appears Dean Smith has already made his mind up about the Frenchman’s quality.

In fact, The Athletic journalist Gregg Evans, even said just last year: “I expect the thinking behind trying to move on Guilbert is that, (Ahmed) Elmohamady can cover any injuries at full-back, and also can’t really be moved on for any money, so Villa could get something back on Guilbert at least. I agree, there’s potential, but it seems like Smith has seen enough and favours others.”

Earning around £40k-a-week at Villa, Guilbert is earning a decent sum of money for someone who is just going to play back-up to Cash, and the Midlands club would surely be better off getting rid of his wages and bringing in a much younger right-back to compete – or, simply promote someone like Kaine Kesler from the academy ranks.

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Guilbert simply picked up a pay-cheque for either sitting on the bench or not even being named in the match-day squad for the first-half of the season that he spent with Villa, and NSWE simply can’t afford to let that happen again.

It might seem harsh to sell a player without taking another look at him on loan, but that’s exactly what the club should do.

Villa should make the ruthless call and let him go.

Meanwhile, Ashley Preece has dropped an exciting transfer update…

Southampton have been linked with a move for Blackburn Rovers striker Adam Armstrong recently and he could be a superb addition to Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side this summer.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Express, Southampton, West Ham and Newcastle United are all keen on the English forward, who hit 28 goals for Blackburn in the Championship last season.

It is suggested that the Saints are ready to bid £15m for the 24-year-old striker, with Hasenhuttl keen to add a striker, a full-back and a midfielder to his squad ahead of next season.

Would he be a good signing?

Armstrong has been hugely impressive for Blackburn since joining on a permanent deal from Newcastle in the summer of 2018, with 64 goals and 19 assists to his name in 160 appearances for the Ewood Park outfit.

Last season was comfortably his best as a professional, as he contributed 28 goals and five assists in just 40 Championship appearances for the Lancashire side, which helped him average a superb 7.15 rating for his performances from WhoScored.

If he had produced the same performances in Southampton’s side last season, he would have comfortably been rated as their best player, which certainly suggest that he could be a worthwhile addition to Hasenhuttl’s side ahead of next season.

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The Austrian is certainly lacking in quality depth up front, as the Saints struggled in the absence of Danny Ings last season, with youngsters Michael Obafemi and Dan N’Lundulu both given very few opportunities to impress in attack.

Considering Ings has been heavily linked with a move away, signing a young striker such as Armstrong would make a lot of sense for the Saints, as he could step up should the former Liverpool man depart, either this summer or next summer when his contract at St Mary’s expires.

Hasenhuttl also favours smaller, pacy strikers in his side, as evidenced by Ings, Che Adams and Nathan Tella all featuring there this season, so the Austrian would definitely love a striker in the mould of Armstrong next season.

Given Armstrong’s superb performances in the Championship both this season and last, he deserves a chance to show what he can do in the Premier League, so Martin Semmens should definitely look to bring the “special” striker in this summer.

And, in other news… Semmens should seal Southampton swoop for 21 y/o tipped to become “one of the best in Europe”

In what was a topsy-turvy game at St James’ Park, Newcastle’s valiant efforts went unrewarded as they slipped to an agonising 4-3 defeat at home to Manchester City.

Steve Bruce’s side let go of the proverbial handbrake and went after the recently-crowned champions of England, and took the lead on two separate occasions, only for Ferran Torres to extinguish their hopes with a fine hat-trick.

And while much of the Magpies’ performers on the night stood up to be counted, one man who really let his manager down, was Federico Fernandez.

The Argentine only recently returned to the first-team fold after a couple of months out with a thigh muscle strain, and looked all at sea against Pep Guardiola’s side’s free-flowing attack.

As per Sofascore, he made zero tackles and interceptions over the course of the game, and competed in just two duels, winning one.

Fernandez just looked a touch slower than everyone else in either getting to City’s attackers or reacting to danger, while he also had fewer touches than goalkeeper Martin Dubravka too.

He finished the game with a 5.9 match rating as per Sofascore, which was by far the lowest of any outfield player on the pitch.

And, writing in his post-match player ratings for The Shields Gazette, Liam Kennedy gave him a five, saying: “Looked a yard off the pace. Second to every ball. Since returning from injury it’s not been the best of runs in the side for the usually reliable Argentine.”

With his contract on Tyneside coming to an end this summer, and The Athletic claiming that his long-term future is in limbo, there’s a real decision for Bruce to make in these last couple of games.

The Athletic said: “Fernandez, however, does not have another extension clause in his contract, as Newcastle already enacted that option 12 months ago. Instead, fresh terms need to be agreed upon and, while preliminary talks have taken place with his representatives, a new deal has not yet been confirmed.

“Given the Argentinian is 32, Newcastle will be reluctant to hand him a multi-year contract, particularly considering the muscular problems he has faced since recovering from COVID-19. Fernandez is believed to be receptive to staying, though, and further talks are expected to take place.”

With his recent form, and uncertain future, surely Bruce would be better off taking Fernandez out of the team and perhaps giving an opportunity to one of the club’s academy talents?

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The Magpies have nothing to play for now given that they have already avoided relegation from the Premier League this season, and Bruce could hand valuable first-team minutes to those who could really make a long-term career at St James’ Park, instead of Fernandez.

The Argentine shouldn’t play again this season.

Meanwhile, this Newcastle star made an “absolute mug” of Man City yesterday…

In all the delight of Aston Villa’s impressive win away from home at Spurs in the Premier League, the most eye-catching feature was no doubt the debuts of both Carney Chukwuemeka and Jaden Philogene-Bidace.

Dean Smith embraced the opportunity to hand a couple of Villa’s standout academy players a chance to take to the field in the top flight, and with the final day now upon us, it’s surely time for the manager to hand them a start.

While all the talk has been about Chukwuemeka – understandable given his superb performances in the FA Youth Cup – Philogene-Bidace is also pushing hard to make his mark on the first team.

The 19-year-old has been in fine form this season for the club’s under-23s, scoring five goals in just 14 games at Premier League 2 level, as well as providing three assists. That’s not to mention the superb hat-trick he scored on his England under-19 debut back in November.

His former coach Ahmed Abdulla has raved about his ability as an out-and-out winger, who – judging by the coach’s comments – someone who seems perfectly ready to grab his opportunity in the top flight.

Abdulla said: “He can come inside or go on the outside. The model winger. He hugs the touchline and can beat his man. (He’s) Very confident and very light on his feet and skips past tackles, not one of them that gets hit and goes down. He bounces off tackles. He’s very strong and outstanding in one-v-ones.”

With nothing but pride at stake for Villa, Smith must go one step further than he did last week and give Philogene-Bidace the chance to start from the off against Chelsea.

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It would be an exciting end to what has been a fine Premier League season for Villa.

Meanwhile, Villa are eyeing a summer move for this Scottish star…

Former Leeds United midfielder Carlton Palmer has told The Transfer Tavern in an exclusive interview that he expects Ezgjan Alioski to remain at Elland Road this summer.

Alioski’s contract is up at the end of the month and it had looked like he was on his way out of the Yorkshire club, with Galatasaray heavily linked.

However, according to Football Insider, Leeds have offered the 29-year-old a new and improved offer as they desperately try to keep hold of him.

It is all still a bit up in the air at the moment, but Palmer is tipping Alioski to eventually put pen to paper on a new deal and extend his stay at Elland Road.

“You don’t want to lose any of your good players,” the ex-Leeds star said as he discussed Alioski’s future. “The problem that you’ve got, though, is the players get their heads turned by agents who are always touting their players around.

“Obviously [Marcelo] Bielsa wants to keep him and I’m sure they’ll reach an agreement. If the player wants to stay, they’ll reach an agreement.”

It is not hard to see why Bielsa wants to retain the services of the North Macedonia international.

In the season that has just gone, Alioski missed just two Premier League games and was used in more than one position by Bielsa, showing his importance to the side.

Manchester United could not find a way past Leeds United at Elland Road on Sunday, the clash in Yorkshire ending 0-0.

Chances were certainly at a premium and here is how we rated the Red Devils throughout the game:

Starting XI

Henderson – 6/10: It was not an extraordinarily busy afternoon for the United stopper, only being forced into three saves according to WhoScored. His distribution was impressive though.

Wan-Bissaka – 7/10: Probably the most reliable of United’s defensive options, the former Crystal Palace man provided five tackles and two clearances as he dealt with the threat of the ever-dangerous Jack Harrison relatively well.

Maguire – 6/10: Again, not the busiest afternoon for the Red Devils’ captain, Leeds being restricted to just three shots. He was dominant in the air throughout the game but really should have scored with a free header in the first half and he was also booked.

Lindelof – 6/10: Not tested all too much, the Swede was solid if unspectacular. He produced three clearances as the hosts were kept at arms’ length throughout the majority of the game.

Shaw – 7/10: Like his fellow full-back, Shaw impressed at Elland Road. He was very effective going forwards, racking up one of the highest pass completion rates in the visitors’ side, whilst contributing a fantastic five key passes.

Fred – 7/10: Far better defensively than going forwards, Fred was instrumental in keeping Marcelo Bielsa’s troops quiet. The former Shakhtar man contributed three tackles, three interceptions and three clearances. He was also a reliable presence on the ball.

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McTominay – 6/10: After scoring twice and notching an assist in the reverse fixture this season, the Scot would certainly have been wanting to rack up a similar contribution in Yorkshire. That was simply not possible though, completing just 30 passes throughout the match.

Fernandes – 6/10: Arguably one of Fernandes’ worst performances for the club since joining last January. He had five shots throughout the clash but did not get any of those on target – an aspect that was somewhat synonymous with the majority of United’s attack play.

James – 5/10: Playing at a stadium where he could have potentially have been an employee, the young winger could barely get involved. He did not have a single shot and when presented with a chance to score in the second half, he dallied for too long before he was tackled by Ezgjan Alioski.

Greenwood – 7/10: The United academy graduate was probably the brightest spark for the visitors at Elland Road. On numerous occasions, he looked the biggest threat for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men but was regularly denied by Illan Meslier.

Rashford  – 6/10: Whilst still clearly finding his way back to full fitness, Rashford looked off the pace against Leeds. He struggled to find any room to work in and accumulated the worst pass accuracy rate of the Manchester United starting XI at just 69.2% before eventually being replaced.

Substitutes

Pogba – 6/10: Replaced Daniel James with just under 15 minutes of regular time remaining but did not really affect the game all too much.

Cavani – 6/10: The Uruguayan replaced Rashford towards the end of the tie but like Pogba, did not get involved too much.

Van de Beek – N/A: Introduced for Fred with just one minute remaining, the Dutchman was not on the pitch for long enough to earn a score.