Accrington Stanley midfielder Matt Butcher is a transfer target for Bristol Rovers, according to reports, with the Gas among a number of clubs monitoring the 25-year-old's situation heading into the summer window.
The Portsmouth News report that Butcher, won't be returning to his hometown club this summer as Pompey boss Danny Cowley prioritises other positions to reinforce but is wanted across League One, League Two and Scotland.
Butcher is being released by Accrington at the end of June after failing to agree new terms and is an increasingly sought-after free agent at that level. Rovers, Joey Barton's former club Fleetwood Town, Bradford City plus Scottish sides St Mirren and Motherwell are the clubs listed who have shown an interest.
Butcher, who scored four goals in 33 league One appearances last season, can best be described as a dynamic defensive midfielder who can also deputise in defence, if required.
Rovers' options in that area are captain Paul Coutts, who is suspended for the first three games of next season following his red card at Rochdale, veteran Glenn Whelan, whose future remains uncertain as his contract expires, and Josh Grant, who is a favourite of Barton's but suffered a number of injury issues throughout 2021/22, limiting him to 20 starts.
As the Rovers playing squad and bulk of the coaching staff headed to Dubai last week to celebrate promotion to League One, Barton remained in England to get started on their summer recruitment drive.
The Gas are expected to be very active in the market, although not as busy as last summer, as they reinforce and try to enhance the promotion-winning squad, which was largely assembled from scratch 12 months ago.
The transfer window doesn't open until June 10 but discussions have already begun with targets and representatives while Rovers' retained list, which is due to be published in the next 36 hours as the May 21 deadline looms, could further reveal areas of need in the squad.
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