Lincoln City have reportedly had multiple bids worth around £2 million rejected for Burton Albion attacker Tyrese Shade.
According to Pete O’Rourke, City have made more than one attempt to prise the 26-year-old away from the Brewers, but Burton have so far resisted our interest. It is also claimed that another unnamed club have submitted a significant offer for Shade during the current transfer window, only to see that rejected as well.
Shade is primarily a winger but has also been used through the middle, and he enjoyed an impressive first season at Burton following his arrival from Eastleigh last summer. He scored nine times in 38 League One appearances, while his record across all competitions was even better, with 14 goals from 44 outings.
The Birmingham-born attacker began his senior career with Solihull Moors before joining Leicester City in 2017. He did not make a senior league appearance for the Foxes, but gained EFL experience during a season-long loan with Walsall, making 39 League Two appearances during the 2021/22 campaign.
He subsequently spent two seasons with Swindon Town before returning to Solihull Moors on loan during the second of those. His career really took off after joining Eastleigh in the summer of 2024, scoring 14 National League goals in 43 appearances and earning a move to Burton a year later. The fee received by Eastleigh was reported to be a club record.
Shade’s name should already be familiar to regular Stacey West readers. On April 21st, I picked him as a Burton player I would (al)most like to see City sign when going through one potential target from every League One club. I plumped for Charlie Webster, but at the time, I wrote:
“I really wanted to be edgy here and pick Tyrese Shade, a physical and mobile forward who has a big future. Like Tolaj at Plymouth (but not as honed), I see Shade pairing great physical attributes with intelligence, and he’ll be an asset to a top-end League One, bottom-end Championship side.”
That assessment now appears particularly relevant given the level of City’s reported interest. Shade would offer another mobile and powerful option across the attacking positions, while at 26 he also fits the profile of a player who should still have plenty of his best football ahead of him. I know he’s 26, but having watched him across just 102 goal-less minutes against Lincoln, I liked what I saw.
The significant detail at this stage is Burton’s determination to keep hold of him. If the report is accurate, bids in the region of £2 million have already failed to tempt them into selling, while interest from another club suggests City are not alone in identifying Shade as a player capable of making the step up.
Whether we return with another offer remains to be seen. I think in the current market, £2m would be the absolute top level the player is worth, but multiple rejected bids would suggest Burton are not interested in playing around.
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