Tom Cleverley has revealed that Plymouth Argyle have entered preliminary talks with a club in their quest to replace Lorent Tolaj.
The Swiss striker was allowed to head to Bristol City in the wake of a £4 million bid being accepted by the Devon club, with the transfer finally confirmed after weeks of speculation on Monday.
Cleverley Reveals Striker News
Having finally got their hands on a new first-choice goalkeeper in the form of Murphy Cooper from Queens Park Rangers, attention has now seemingly turned on hunting for a new striker to lead the line ahead of the start of the season in a couple of weeks.
Argyle currently have both Owen Oseni and Aribim Pepple at their disposal, but have faced threats around losing the latter following brief speculation that Portsmouth were ‘accelerating interest’ in the Canadian international.
However, it seems that action has been taken towards adding a third option to their ranks, with Tom Cleverley revealing that talks have begun with an unnamed club over a move.
Speaking to PlymouthLive following their pre-season friendly against Torquay United, the former Watford boss said:
“We have certainly contacted a club around a player that we are interested in. The conversations are being had but I wouldn’t say anything is close yet.
“I’m sorry I can’t give much more than that at this point, but the conversations started months ago for the potential day that this happened (Tolaj leaving) because he’s a good player. In my opinion, he’s a Championship striker.
“I see Caleb Watts as a good option there as well. Listen, we are greedy as head coaches, I would love two strikers but I have got a budget to work towards and that would be me probably overspending that. So I think one striker and we will be going for a real quality one.”
Who Should Argyle Look At?
Certainly following the exit of Lorent Tolaj, many would have expected Plymouth Argyle’s next splash in the market would be to find a new striker with the funds they have raised from Lorent Tolaj’s sale to Bristol City.
It is probably a situation that the club and Tom Cleverley have expected for months, with interest stemming as far back as March for potential suitors in the outgoing forward heading into the summer window.
While it is not confirmed who they are looking at right now, there are some fairly obvious names the club are looking at, the leading of which is Jayden Wareham from their Devon rivals in Exeter City.
Having briefly been a target for Bristol City himself, the 23-year-old proved to be a cut above in League One and despite his efforts, could not prevent the Grecians’ relegation, and with funds needed at St James Park, a sale should be considered.
However, an option that fits straight into the first team may not be the wisest option, as that could stunt the development of Owen Oseni, who is surely deserving of a chance to play much more regularly after a bright debut at Home Park.
