West Bromwich Albion winger Matheus Pereira deserves a move back to the Premier League this summer.

What's been said?

That's according to Kevin Phillips, who stated his belief in a recent interview with Football Insider that the £11.7m-rated forward would be an ideal signing for Leeds United this summer.

The 25-year-old has been reported to be a target of Marcelo Bielsa's side in the upcoming transfer window, along with the likes of West Ham and Aston Villa, with West Brom thought to be demanding a fee of around €25m (£21.5m) in order to part with the Brazilian.

Phillips told Football Insider: "I think it would suit their style. Leeds are an exciting, free-flowing team, you can express yourself in that side.

"We've seen that with players like Raphinha and Jack Harrison this year, that they can just go and play with freedom, but you have to be prepared to work your socks off and that’s something Pereira would have to take to another level.

"But it's no surprise that a player like that, of that mould and ilk, is being linked with Leeds."

Fans will be gutted

Considering just how impressive Pereira was for West Brom this season, the prospect of the winger moving onto pastures new this summer is sure to leave Baggies fans gutted.

Indeed, over his 33 Premier League appearances this term, the £39,000-per-week maestro scored 11 goals, registered six assists and created 11 big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of two shots and making 1.8 key passes per game.

These metrics saw the man Emile Heskey dubbed an "exciting" player earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.18, ranking him as the club's best performer in the top tier of English football by a considerable distance.

As such, if Leeds - or any other club for that matter - were to go on and sign the forward this summer, it would undoubtedly come as a huge blow to the West Brom faithful, as the Baggies' chances of securing an immediate return to the Premier League next season would appear to be significantly reduced with the loss of their star playmaker.

In other news: Chris Wilder's West Brom transfer target emerges, he'll surely have Albion fans buzzing