It’s being reported that the Imps are one of the clubs tracking 25-year-old Tom Bayliss, who is set for release by Shrewsbury Town.
The news is coming from Football Insider, and it does fall foul of the rule of three, which does leave some room for interpretation, but it’s something I could feasibly see us doing. Bayliss fits some of the criteria I think we’ll be looking for – free, young enough to have potential sell on if he was outstanding, but also with plenty of experience at this level.
He is also a player who features in a position we’re likely to recruit in. He plays as an advanced midfielder, and whilst he can play out wide, he’s almost a like-for-like replacement for a Danny Mandroiu or Ted Bishop, should they not return to the club. His output isn’t outstanding, with just three goals and two assists last season, but it was in a Shrewsbury team that lacked inventiveness throughout the campaign. The season before, he had 11 goal involvements, six goals and five assists, which feels more like the sort of output we would find acceptable.
🔷🔶 @TomBayliss_6 https://t.co/ZQnBP1QXDU pic.twitter.com/Dyz2oVpVEs
— Shrewsbury Town FC (@shrewsburytown) May 7, 2024
The report suggests we’re locked in a battle with Wycombe and Charlton, and whilst it falls foul of the rule of three, I can see those being the sort of sharks prowling the waters we wish to fish in. They’re middling League One side with aspirations of hitting the top six, just like us, and I can see them and us fighting for the same players (see also Blackpool, who I think fall into that category).
I can get on board with this, because like an annoying know-it-all I have tracked Bayliss’s career. I was writing for Football League World when he broke through at Coventry, one of a number of young players expected to reach great heights. His move to Preston was thought to have cost between £1.5 million and £1.8 million, but he never shone at Deepdale. He was promoted with Wigan in 2022 but only played a handful of games, one of which was against us.
To me, Tom Bayliss feels like the sort of player who will thrive under the right circumstances. He seemed decent at Salop under Cotterill, but not last season after the change of management. He thrived at Coventry, but not Preston or Wigan, and as he’s Leicester-born, a move to the Imps would be a move closer to home.
Still, it’s rumour season at the moment, so we’ll have to sit tight and see what happens.