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There has been a lot of speculation today about the future of Zach Clough and where he could be playing his football by the end of January. And indeed how much it will cost to acquire his services from cash stripped Bolton Wanderers.
Talk is that Clough could be allowed to leave the club for as little as £1 million. Clearly this isn’t going down well with the Wanderers fan base. But it would be a surprise if the club allowed their most valuable asset to leave for so little, especially with Neil Lennon today coming out to say there will be no cut price sales. Demarai Grey left Birmingham City for a reported £3.75 million which is probably closer to the fee Bolton have in mind for Clough.
One of the links today was to MLS side Seattle Sounders. This seems bizarre because I see no reason why he would go to America when surely the Premier League, or at least a top Championship club, beckons?
Another link is to the Premier League with Bournemouth said to be interested. It has been reported recently that Eddie Howe is looking to make additions up top, so maybe Clough has been earmarked as that addition? He has also been linked in the past with Manchester United, though there doesn’t seem to be any rumours linking him with the Red Devils at the moment.
Championship rivals (if we actually rival anyone in the Championship for anything these days) Sheffield Wednesday are also said to be looking to sign Clough along with a number of other Championship clubs.
The link to Birmingham yesterday has been dismissed. This was said to be because Wanderers do not want to sell him on the cheap which is reassuring and goes some way to rubbish the talk of a £1 million fee. Marc Iles also indicated on Twitter that it is likely only a Premier League move would interest Clough, but you can’t help feeling if a Championship club showed us the money he would have to leave.
There is a clear feeling that the vultures are circling. This view can be backed up by the news that Clough will not be travelling to Eastleigh tomorrow. It is a belief held by many that Lennon will be told not to play players a who are the subject to interest from other clubs in order to avoid cup tying them, and Clough’s absence seems all too coincidental with that in mind.