Middlesbrough are said to be readying a bid for Everton striker Tom Cannon.
The Republic of Ireland U-21 international is being pursued by Middlesbrough and also north east neighbours Sunderland, who are facing the proposition of losing their own talismanic front man Ross Stewart.
That is according to The Sun journalist Alan Nixon who offered the news via his Patreon page. It comes as Sunderland brace themselves for the loss of Ross Stewart, who is the subject of interest from Southampton boss Russell Martin who admitted his admiration for the player.
In Middlesbrough’s case, it is no secret that the club, and specifically Michael Carrick have tried to identify ways of replacing-albeit it not directly-the goals that were produced and scored by the departing Chuba Akpom and Cameron Archer.
The strategy is to attempt to evenly spread those goals across the squad with attacking players in different positions, thus not becoming too reliant on individuals.
Deja vu for Preston following Tom Cannon links
Everton striker Cannon impressed in a loan spell at Preston North End last season, scoring 8 goals in 20 appearances. Ironically, Cannon was brought in after a failed bid to re-sign Cameron Archer on loan last season, being pipped to his signature by-you guessed it-Middlesbrough.
Could history repeat itself as far as Boro and Preston go? Well, one stumbling block could be the asking price. Cannon, 24, was earmarked to leave on loan, but after Sean Dyche brought in three signings in Youssef Chermiti, Beto and Arnaud Danjuma, he has found himself down the pecking order and possibly surplus to requirements full stop.
Preston have been confident throughout this summer that a loan deal will be sanctioned by Everton for the 24-year-old, but it now appears that the circumstances have changed.
It seems the Merseyside club are ready to listen to offers for him, with the mooted sum they are looking to receive between £5-7m. That could prove to be a fee out of Boro’s price range, given that they have spent on nine permanent new arrivals already.
If nobody is ready to spend that big on the young forward, you can expect Boro, Sunderland and Preston to test the water with a loan offer.