Sutton United are reportedly closing in on their first summer signing ahead of the 2026/27 season, following the announcement of their retained list days prior.
Chris Agutter’s side have already kick-started their preparations for next season, having confirmed their list of players who would be leaving the football club – with the list involving key midfielder Lewis Simper.
However, with that now publicised Sutton’s attention can shift onto rebuilding their side ahead of the new campaign.
It now appears as though supporters of the National League side won’t need to wait too much longer to learn the identity of their first summer acquisition.
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One area of the squad that Sutton appeared to have a slight concern with is not only scoring goals but also seeing opponents off during their matches.
Agutter’s side scored 59 league goals last season, but have already said goodbye to Simper who alone contributed to roughly 33% of those.
Therefore, one area of the Sutton side that likely required attention was their forward department and according to Gloucestershire Live journalist Rhys Anderson, this is set to be addressed.
The report states that Sutton are closing in on a deal to sign Forest Green Rovers forward Temi Babalola, following the conclusion of his loan stint with Brackley Town.
Babalola joined the club from National League South champions Worthing last summer, but has struggled thus far scoring just four goals in his 21 appearances for the club.
The 25-year-old joined for an undisclosed fee back in October, but less than a year on and he will be moving permanently before the start of pre-season.
Is Babalola likely to make an immediate impact next season?
After hitting double figures for Worthing in the previous campaign, it’s fair to admit that the 2025/26 season has been a learning curve for Babalola.
He started the campaign in the sixth tier in strong form, contributing to 10 goals in his opening 13 matches across all competitions, which evidently flew him onto Forest Green’s radar and thus signing for them.
However, Babalola failed to get past the likes of Christian Doidge and Kairo Mitchell in the pecking order as well as struggling to replicate his form earlier in the campaign, therefore falling out of favour.
Sutton narrowly avoided relegation in the end last season after a tough run of form towards the final weeks of the season, suggesting that the club will want to be ambitious in the summer and get themselves back into EFL contention once again.
With Sutton, Babalola is likely to gain regular first-team minutes, which would allow him to settle quicker and attempt to recapture the form he showed with Worthing at the start of last season.
Since 2022, the 25-year-old has also had a series of different loan and permanent moves, suggesting that he’s struggled to settle down at a club. This could be a key indicator as to why his goal tally hasn’t been as prolific in recent years – but that may change at Sutton as he could gain the chance to settle down and enjoy his football again.
