Paudie O’Connor has been linked with a move to a Championship club by reporter Pete O’Rourke.
In a Tweet, he said, “Number of Championship clubs line up move for Lincoln City captain Paudie O’Connor – bid expected in next 24 hours”. Obviously, that’s ensured a few aggregator sites have picked up on the news, and it quickly becomes a solid rumour; it’s seemingly going to be a fight to keep Paudie O’Connor. Or is it?
26-year-old O’Connor joined the Imps from Bradford City last summer, played 45 league games last season and was named captain this campaign. He started his career with Limerick in Ireland, attracting the attention of Leeds United. He moved to Elland Road in 2017 after trials with Crystal Palace and Leicester City, appearing four times for Leeds. He enjoyed two loan spells, one with Blackpool and another with Bradford, whom he signed for permanently in June 2019.
As well as being named captain, he was also named Player of the Season last campaign, and he’s started this season in good form, scoring last night against Northampton Town with an emphatic header.
So, should we be worried? Yes and no. Of course, there’s a story coming from somewhere here, but I’m not sure how close a bid is. Here’s my big question – if Pete O’Rourke has reported the story, where did it come from? Sometimes, he might get a story from a club, but what are the chances he’s spoken to four or five Championship clubs, and they’ve all said, ‘we’re going to bid for Paudie O’Connor in the next 24 hours’? Slim, I’d say.
If it hasn’t come from a specific buying club, then where has it come from? The next obvious option is an agent. It could be an agent trying to drum up interest, but Paudie isn’t out of contract; it’s not like Regan, where a move was imminent. Paudie has spoken of how happy he is here, and after being named captain it feels like he’s settled. I’m 99.9% sure we don’t have a player agitating for a move. Chatting with him at the Sponsor’s Event recently, he seemed absolutely focused, relaxed and ready for the season ahead.
If it is a rumour originating from an agent, then the purpose could be a new deal. Think about it – the agent would be in a position to say that multiple clubs were interested, but with no reason to disrupt the player, it could only be for another purpose. Has Ben House’s new deal sparked the agent’s interest? It’s possible, but again, pure speculation.
There’s a third, very far-fetched option. The leak could have come from Lincoln City. If you recall, there was a story about Anthony Scully last season, which almost certainly came from the club trying to drum up a sale before the window closed. Now, the club will not be trying to do that with Paudie – he’s been named captain because he’s our leader, so there’s no desire to be drumming up a sale. This isn’t from the club.
I don’t know which it is – I have no idea where Pete O’Rourke gets his information. Through The Real EFL, I have seen first-hand where stories come from, and more often than not, it is done to try and create a situation, not report on one. It’ll be interesting to see if it ends up just being another one of those rumours that disappear without a trace in a couple of days.
Do I think Paudie O’Connor will be the subject of a bid in the next 24 hours? No. If he was, would we sell? It would have to be an eye-watering figure, I think, and given the transfer window is nowhere near closing, and very few clubs in the Championship are spending high six-figure fees, I would suggest it is unlikely.
My advice? Sleep well, Imps fans, Paudie is surely staying put.
You must be logged in to post a comment.