Nigel Pearson concedes he may have to “trade” his way to improving his Bristol City squad in the final month of the transfer window, admitting that the club have received enquiries for some of their players, albeit without any credible bids to accept or reject.
City have made four new additions this summer with Kane Wilson, Kal Naismith and Mark Sykes arriving in May and June and very much part of the first-team picture and integrated in the club while goalkeeper Stefan Bajic steps up his recovery from wrist surgery.
The Frenchman was City’s most-recent addition to the squad on July 5 and Pearson would like, based on his previous words, to bring in two more players before the close of the transfer window on September 1.
With the free agent market explored earlier in the window, and most of the best options now exhausted, the Robins’ alternatives are through the loan system - which requires waiting on Premier League clubs to make a decision on their talent, often towards the end of the window - or spending money, something City are both reticent and largely unable to do due to concerns around the EFL’s Profit & Sustainability regulations and the threat of a points deduction next year.
What could, of course, help meet those requirements and also equip Pearson with resources in the market would be a significant sale, something City have been unable to achieve since Josh Brownhill was sold to Burnley in January 2020 for around £9million.
With minimal interest in Han-Noah Massengo, the remaining prized assets possessing considerable market value are midfielder Alex Scott and Antoine Semenyo. Pearson wouldn’t draw on specific examples or individuals but accepts that the concept of trading - which was a divisive tenet of Mark Ashton’s tenure as CEO - remains a consideration, to strengthen City both in a sporting and business sense.
“It will depend on a number of factors,” Pearson said, when asked about the potential for incomings. “I think I’ve already pointed out a few times that we’ve not been in a position to necessarily go out and spend money, we might have to trade, but we’ll see what happens.
“It’s (trading) never not been a consideration because I have an understanding of where we are. We’ve already had moments where discussions have been made as to how we approach a certain situation. I’m not going to elaborate on individual circumstances but those are the circumstances and criteria with which we are working within.
“What remains at the forefront of my mind is to try and still build a side but do it in a way which is the right way for us as a football club at the moment. That isn’t to say it’s always going to be like that but clearly the last two or three years have been quite tough for the business, for the industry in general and how we’ve approached it in the past has impacted how we approach it now, but that’s just how it is.
“I think there are a few Premier League clubs who are finding that the waters are a bit choppy at the moment and that is the reality of where the industry’s at and I think it’s important that I, as a manager, respect where we are as a club and also work within the parameters.
“I agreed to be here and work within those parameters so you’re not going to hear any moaning but it can be a frustration at times. Hopefully we’ll do some business but I can’t promise it.”
Hypothetically-speaking, the sale of Semenyo or Scott could be worth anything between £10m-£25m, which would both significantly raise revenue to help meet financial fair play obligations but also give Pearson some extra leverage in the market to recruit.
It would inevitably mean City lose one of their best players - and the debate as to which one is more expendable is a conversation in itself - but that is the unfortunate trade-off if the Robins want to be active in the market.
There could be a situation whereby they conclude it’s either not worth selling one of them or that there isn’t a financially-attractive enough offer so Pearson sticks with what he’s got.
As it stands, that decision hasn’t needed to be made because outside of some enquiries for unnamed players, which he’s previously indicated, there have been no bids received.
The concept of Semenyo departing before September 1 was thought to be all-but over following the striker’s shin injury, but the 22-year-old is edging back towards fitness and is expected to be involved in first-team action before the end of the window which re-opens that particular possibility, with Celtic, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest and Brighton & Hove Albion among his suitors.
A story earlier this week via The United Stand claimed that Manchester United had made an “enquiry” for Scott. Bristol Live understands that neither City nor the player’s representatives have received any kind of official contact from Old Trafford, but there is evident interest in the England Under-19 international, as is the case from most of the Premier League’s 20 clubs, such is the midfielder’s increasing standing in the game.
The fact that Massengo, Dan Bentley, Jay Dasilva and Tomas Kalas are among a clutch of players whose deals expire in 2023, also leaves the club vulnerable to late offers for those individuals with potential take-it-or-leave-it bids that if rejected mean they could walk away next summer for nothing.
“There have been some enquiries but it’s quite a big leap from enquiries to bids, but there have been, yes,” Pearson said. “But I’m not a control freak, I don’t need to know every move that’s been made. Richard (Gould, CEO) always updates me on what’s happening, so I’m not worried about that.
“I’m always very open with the players. If there is an enquiry, they’re going to find out because there are mischievous people out in the world, without going into details. They’re going to find out from somebody so I’d rather tell them where we are as a club and what I’m thinking as a manager, because I think that’s the best way to go about it.”
Pearson also revealed that unsuccessful “bids” have been made by City for targets, and although he didn’t venture any further details that alone is intriguing given the previous admission over finances, but as yet nothing has come to fruition.
“We’ve had bids for players that have been unsuccessful so it’s not that we’ve not attempted to sign players but you know my stance on that, I don’t speculate and I don’t talk about other people’s players out of respect because I wouldn’t expect people to talk about our players, but they do,” he said.
“We’ve had bids in for players and we’ve either not been successful or it’s just not worked out. But I don’t see any reason to get involved in making that known to the public. In the sense it might be reassuring for our fans to know we are looking to do that but I don’t want to get into a sort of spin doctor-effect, I don’t want that, because it’s nonsense.”
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