Leeds United are one of the clubs in the race to bring Goncalo Ramos to the Premier League this summer.

What's the talk?

That's according to a report by Portuguese publication Record (16/08: page 33), who claim that Newcastle United are now preparing a €40m (£33.5m) offer for the Benfica centre-forward in order to fend off competition from Leeds, Everton, Southampton and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

This would appear to support an earlier report last week by 90min, who claimed that both Newcastle and Nottingham Forest had held talks with the Liga Portugal side regarding a deal for the 21-year-old, while the Whites, Crystal Palace, West Ham United and Paris Saint-Germain were also mentioned as interested parties.

De Ketelaere alternative

While missing out on the €36m (£30.5m) signing of Charles De Ketelaere earlier this summer will have undoubtedly come as a gutting blow to Victor Orta and Jesse Marsch - with the Whites being heavily linked with a move for the 21-year-old forward - it would very much appear as if Ramos would represent something of a dream alternative to the Belgium international.

Indeed, it is undeniable that the player who scored 18 goals and registered 10 assists over 49 appearances for Club Brugge KV last season - as well as being a talent billed as the "heir to Kevin de Bruyne's throne" - would have made an exceptional addition at Elland Road this season, with De Ketelaere joining AC Milan, Orta must turn his focus in the market elsewhere.

And, considering just how much raw potential Ramos very much appears to possess, the Benfica starlet would look to be a fantastic alternative target for the Spanish director of football to pursue prior to September's transfer deadline.

Indeed, over his 29 Liga Portugal appearances - only 17 of which came as starts - last season, the £12.6m-rated forward scored seven goals, registered two assists and created three big chances for his teammates, in addition to taking an average of 1.9 shots, making 0.8 key passes and completing 0.8 dribbles per game.

Furthermore, the £8.2k-per-week striker also missed a further 12 big chances of his own last time out, a statistic that, while usually perceived as a negative, proves just how often Ramos gets himself to goalscoring positions over the course of a 90 minutes - while the 21-year-old's composure in front of goal will only likely improve with confidence and age.

This is something that has already been evident so far in Benfica's 2022/23 campaign, with the player who Football Talent Scout Jacek Kulig claimed is "simply too good" having already bagged four goals and provided three assists over four Champions League and Liga Portugal fixtures - averaging a direct goal contribution every 40 minutes of football played this season.

As such, should Ramos be able to keep up this quite extraordinary level of performance in the final third following a potential switch to Elland Road this summer, a £33.5m fee for the 21-year-old could quite easily look a bargain for the Whites - leading us to believe that Orta simply must do all he can to land the Portugal international as his De Ketelaere alternative.