Significant update revealed on Aston Villa's pursuit of Leeds United star | OneFootball

The Midlands club look to have left the race for Willy Gnonto, having secured a deal to re-sign Jaden Philogene.

Premier League club Aston Villa have reportedly ended their pursuit of Willy Gnonto.

That is according to Planet Sport, who believe Unai Emery's team are no longer pursuing a deal for the talented Italian wide player.

Gnonto is just one of many Leeds United players to have been linked with a move away from Elland Road following their play-off heartbreak in May, with the winger managing to recover well following a shaky start to the 2023/24 campaign.

Having himself unavailable for games in August 2023, Gnonto's time in West Yorkshire looked to be coming to an end, but he managed to redeem himself and was a real asset during the second half of the season.

He may have been even more lethal for Leeds if he hadn't picked up an injury against Hull City in September, but the most important thing from the 20-year-old's point of view is the fact he managed to shine following his regrettable summer transfer saga.

With these contributions in mind, it's no surprise that he is attracting interest, but it remains to be seen whether he manages to secure an exit from Elland Road before the end of the summer window.

The player still has three years left on his contract with the Whites and with this in mind, Leeds are in a very strong negotiating position at this point.

Although there was a need for the Whites to balance the books following their failure to secure a Premier League return at the first time of asking, Daniel Farke's side have already cashed in on Archie Gray for a deal worth between £30m-£40m.

And with Glen Kamara also making the move away from West Yorkshire, it's unclear whether any other players need to be sold before the summer window.

With Leeds requiring more quality and depth in some areas, another sale could potentially help to fund that, but they may have already done enough to balance the books at this point.

Aston Villa exit Willy Gnonto race

Everton are thought to be in talks to recruit Gnonto - and Planet Sport have reported that a fee in the region of £22m could be enough for them to secure the Italian's signature.

With this in mind, it looks as though Sean Dyche's side are in a fairly decent position to recruit the winger, compared to some of the other teams that have been linked with a move for him.

This doesn't come as a major shock, with Emery's side on the verge of signing Jaden Philogene.

Willy Gnonto needs to remain focused on Leeds United for now

Gnonto can't afford to be distracted by transfer speculation again.

If he's to earn a move away from Leeds, he needs to continue impressing and he will only be able to do this if he focuses on what's happening on the pitch.

Pushing for a move away again would be a major mistake, so he just needs to get his head down for now.

If he's allowed to discuss terms with another team, he should do so.

But until that happens, he shouldn't be focusing on speculation, especially with the 2024/25 campaign on the horizon.