If the reports are true about Nakhi Wells being recalled by Burnley this month to sell to the highest bidder, then QPR should look to Scotland for their next forward.
Bristol Live have reported that Bristol City are hopeful that they can get the club to recall the attacker as they attempt to bolster their attacker options by buying Wells full-time.
Everything is still very much up in the air, but QPR need to be careful: if this deal gets done right at the end of the deadline, the club could be left without their top goalscorer – and he would need to be replaced.
That means that, really, they could do with knowing sooner rather than later whether he is actually going to be recalled.
A separate Bristol Live story says that Bristol City and Wigan Athletic are the frontrunners if he does get recalled, but the R’s are surely going to be interested in him given his goalscoring form and the fact they have had him for the past 18 months.
No exact figure has been given for how much they want for him, but they believe that around £5m – the fee they originally paid Huddersfield for him – is around the price they will be considering.
However, given that Wells is now 29 and will likely demand some decent wages as well as a well-lengthed contract, perhaps a move for Dundee United’s Lawrence Shankland might make more sense in the long run.
Who would you rather on a permanent deal?
Lawrence Shankland
Nakhi Wells
Short term wise, Wells is likely to be the safer and more logical option considering he has already scored 13 this season. However, it is unlikely at his age that they are going to make a profit on him in a few years, and the ceiling of his potential is much lower than the Scotsman’s.
Yes, the second-tier in Scotland is clearly far lower than it is England, but the 24-year-old has been tearing it up for two years now and has already earned a national cap as well as generate interest from both of the big Glasgow clubs.
He has scored 25 goals from 25 games this season and scored 34 from 41 in the last. 59 goals in pretty much a season and a half.
There hasn’t been much talk in terms of transfer fees, but his value on Transfermarkt is £405,000k, though realistically they have the mandate to demand so much more than that considering they look a given for the SPL and the calibre of side interested.
With QPR not looking likely to go up this year, it’s worth taking a risk on having Shankland over Wells and having a player who is going to feature for many more years and have a potentially bigger resale value.
