Sky Bet Championship side Leeds United are set to rival West Ham United and Southampton in the race to sign Clerment Foot forward Florian Aye, according to reports from The Sunday Mirror (28/04, page 68).

The Whites look set to miss out on automatic promotion to the Premier League this season, with Marcelo Bielsa seemingly looking to bolster his attacking line having squandered plenty of chances over the last few weeks.

And Clerment Foot's Aye is a name that has been linked with a move to Elland Road - the 22-year old has scored 17 goals in Ligue 2 for the French side this season, as well as producing three assists in a side that currently sit 10th in the league standings.

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It seems as if the Ligue 2 outfit are resigned to losing their star-man in the summer, with the likes of West Ham, Southampton and Leeds all monitoring his progress ahead of the summer.

Leeds are the only team in the top five spots in the Championship to not have a striker in their ranks who has scored 20 or more goals this term.

Marcelo Bielsa's men face Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon, with their dreams of automatic promotion all but over after Sheffield United's win over Ipswich.

The Verdict

This is an area that Leeds need to strengthen, as Roofe and Bamford really do need competition up top.

Aye looks to be a really exciting player on paper, and is clearly very talented having netted almost double figures in a mid-table Ligue 2 side.

Leeds fans will be wanting Ryan Edmondson to step up and break into the first team, but Aye is a proven striker entering his prime years.