Sheffield United should compete with Leicester City for West Bromwich Albion forward Jay Rodriguez.
The Telegraph reports that Leicester, Bournemouth and Burnley are all interested in Rodriguez. That is partly because the 29-year-old is available for just £5m.
Rodriguez has a release clause written into his contract that allows him to leave for the relatively minimal fee this summer. It was a reward for the attacker after his professional behaviour last year.
While other senior players such as Craig Dawson and Ben Foster refused to fly out for warm weather training because they wanted to leave West Brom following their relegation from the Premier League, Rodriguez agreed to stay.
The agreement with the Baggies hierarchy was that he would give them one year in the Championship to try and get promoted. They failed to do so, losing to Aston Villa in the playoffs, meaning Rodriguez can now leave for £5m.
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The Clarets have already renewed their interest. They made offers up to £16m to try and sign the England international 12 months ago.
Bournemouth and Leicester are also ready to give Rodriguez a route back to the top flight.
Why Sheffield United should join the Jay Rodriguez chase
(Photo by Matthew Ashton – AMA/Getty Images)
The Blades have made signing at least one new striker a priority this summer following their promotion. The Sheffield Star says that Brentford top scorer Neal Maupay and Swansea City’s Oli McBurnie head their wish list.
However, Maupay could cost upwards of £20m, while The Sun (19 May, page 63) claims it would take £12m to land McBurnie.
Not only would Rodriguez be far cheaper, but he also has Premier League experience. Maupay has never played in England’s top tier, while McBurnie has 16 appearances and no goals.
Rodriguez, meanwhile, has scored 33 times in 141 games.
The downside is his age, of course, with the West Brom forward turning 30 next month, while Maupay and McBurnie are 22 and 23 respectively.
Yet for instant impact, Rodriguez could be the better choice.
