Tottenham and Leicester are reportedly keen on the signing of Stockport loanee Louie Barry, who will command a fee in the region of £12.5million amid his mega form in the third tier.
Barry has been sent out on various loans from Aston Villa in recent seasons with differing success. Spells at Ipswich, Swindon, MK Dons and Salford returned just nine goals in more than 70 games.
But Barry has been a great asset for Stockport over the last two seasons, starting with nine goals and four assists in League Two last season, and following it up in League One with 11 goals already.
That makes him the top-scorer in the division, and some big clubs have taken notice.
Fichajes reports that Tottenham and Leicester are competing to sign the 21-year-old.
Both are said to be eager to sign the striker, who it’s said will command a fee in the region of €15million (£12.5m/$16m).
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Barry no stranger to big clubs
Barry is no stranger to lining up for and against big clubs. At Aston Villa, his one senior goal came against Liverpool, in a League Cup match, with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane among the opposition.
That was not long after he has returned to England from Barcelona, whose academy was briefly blessed by Barry, the striker playing three times in the UEFA Youth League, assisting once.
But having only just gotten up to speed in the lower divisions, a move to actually play in the Premier League seems premature.
The rumour may be one that has to be taken with a pinch of salt, anyway, as Fichajes state ‘Stockport County has been clear regarding the interest in their young forward’ while suggesting it is them who want to make £12.5million.
That is of course not the case, given he’ll return to Villa at the end of the current campaign. If the Villans thought there was a chance that Barry could make the step up to the Premier League soon, they would surely keep him for themselves, rather than sell to a rival side.
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Spurs are also being linked with the return of Harry Winks, as they’re said to be keen on bringing him back to the club, in a move which would represent a net loss of £22million.
Meanwhile, winger Wilson Odobert is preparing to have surgery, and that could prompt Tottenham to move for a new winger, with Jack Grealish and Takefusa Kubo among those on the radar.
The club are also on the hunt for centre-back Jonathan Tah, though it’s believed Chelsea are ahead given negotiations have begun.
And it’s believed manager Ange Postecoglou could lose his job before the end of the season, with Paul Robinson feeling failure to qualify for European competition could cause the boss an issue.
Barry’s goalscoring form
Barry is already in the best season of his senior career in front of goal. His 12 goals in all competitions this term have beaten last season’s tally of nine, and have come in just 17 games.
Barry hammered in the goals as a Villa academy player, netting 13 times in PL2 in 2020/21, as well as scoring five goals alongside four assists in six FA Youth Cup games in that same season.
Apart from the last couple of campaigns, which have been in England’s bottom two divisions, the forward has struggled to match show that sort of form in senior football.
Continuing to be loaned out by Villa may well be the best course of action for the 21-year-old at the moment, with a lot of time still to make it in the higher divisions.