£8.5m transfer claim made as Ipswich Town step up pursuit of Blackburn Rovers player | OneFootball

Ipswich Town have made an offer worth an initial £8.5m as they look to seal a deal for Blackburn's Sammie Szmodics.

Highlights

Ipswich Town are set to make an offer worth an initial £8.5m for Blackburn’s Sammie Szmodics as they try to close a deal for the forward.

It’s no secret that the Tractors Boys are keen to sign Szmodics following their promotion to the Premier League, but they’ve so far been unable to agree a fee with Rovers for the player, who was the top scorer in the Championship last season.

However, it seems as though a breakthrough is nearing, as journalist Alan Nixon revealed that Ipswich have returned with an improved offer worth an initial £8.5m plus add-ons.

Sammie Szmodics transfer latest

It’s unclear what those add-ons are exactly, but the update states that the bid is ‘approaching the figures needed’ for Blackburn to do a deal, with Rovers hoping to sort Szmodics’ future one way or the other in the week.

The Ireland international missed Blackburn’s friendly against Wigan as the clubs wait for this to play out, and there will be hope from Ipswich’s perspective that a solution can be reached in the coming days as they look to bring in Szmodics, who scored 27 goals last season as John Eustace’s men survived on the final day.

Interestingly, the report claims that the figures involved could price Leeds United out of the running for the ex-Bristol City man, as they had been credited with an interest previously.

Sammie Szmodics is ready for the step up

This is not the news that Blackburn would’ve wanted, as Szmodics’ importance to the team is clear to see, so it’s not going to be easy to replace him.

But, there has to be an understanding that he is a player that is destined to play in the Premier League, and his performances in the last campaign were always going to attract a lot of transfer attention.

At 28, Szmodics will know that he won’t get many more opportunities to play in the top-flight, so it would be no surprise if he was keen for this deal to happen.

From Blackburn’s perspective, it’s about getting the best fee possible, and some will feel an initial £8.5m is on the low side given how good he was last season. So, it would be beneficial to know more about the odd-ons, and whether they’re realistically going to be hit.

Blackburn Rovers must spend the Sammie Szmodics money well

We know that there are a lot of off-field issues involving Blackburn right now, and the big concern for supporters will be whether the funds brought in by any potential sale will be reinvested into the squad.

The lack of business this summer is a real concern so far, and losing Szmodics is going to considerably weaken the squad. And, it’s worth reiterating that it’s a squad that survived on the final day despite all of Szmodics’ goals.

So, major work is going to be required if they lose their star man, and Eustace will no doubt be hoping that this will allow him to make a move on several targets that he and the recruitment team will have lined up.