Bristol City boss responds to transfer speculation about Spurs, Wolves and Bournemouth linked pair

Speculation grows in two Bristol City players - here is the latest as Nigel Pearson makes his stance known
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Nigel Pearson says there have been no bids for Bristol City pair Alex Scott and Antoine Semenyo, as he instructs clubs to go higher in their valuation. The January transfer window is only six days young, but already there has been relentless speculation about the futures of the club's most prized assets.

Scott and Semenyo are not short of admirers, and more than a dozen clubs are reportedly interested in the pair, with some wanting to sign both. Newly rich Bournemouth, managed by former City midfielder Gary O'Neil are said to want both, and there had been reports from Ghana of a bid being rejected for the World Cup striker.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The situation has been clarified however, and no bids have been made for Semenyo, or Scott as of yet. It is not to say that the club aren't braced for offers as the window goes on, but at the moment any talk of a departure is only speculation.

Everton, Leeds United, Man Utd, Spurs, as well as Brighton & Hove Albion, are said to be interested in Scott. In the case of Semenyo, Bournemouth are the front-runners and Crystal Palace have ruled themselves out, but Fenerbahce have him on a short list, whilst Celtic and Rangers are also keeping tabs.

When asked about increasing speculation in both Scott and Semenyo, Pearson said: "There are a lot of stories out there and a lot of speculation and without adding fuel to speculation we are aware there is at the moment quite a bit of interest in some of our younger players. As it stands at the minute we have not received anything for them."

A report earlier in the week from CBS journalist Ben Jacobs said that interested clubs in Scott may have been put off by the reported asking price of £12m. Another report from the Telegraph said that Wolves were prepared to pay £10m to secure the services of the youngster.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The aim is to keep hold of Scott and Semenyo, but after a loss of £28.5m, the club are trying to stay within the confines of Financial Fair Play. Pearson is not responsible for conducting transfer negotiations with departing CEO Richard Gould and his replacement Phil Alexander tasked with that job, along with technical director Brian Tinnion.

The 59-year-old however has rejected the valuation of £12m in the England Under-19 international, but believes that transfer talk is only being spoken about, as a result of the act of agents and representatives.

"I wouldn’t accept £12m but I don’t know what figure the club are thinking of," he said. "At this point I can’t really add to the speculation but most of it will be driven by agents and representatives, it’s just how it is."

There is a desire from the former Leicester City manager to do business in this window, despite not utilising it last year in his first full season. They need to move players off of their books first if they are to bring new players in and the departures of Ryley Towler, as well as Joe Low and Sam Pearson, do not change the situation. City have told three out-of-contract first team players that they can leave which could free up some funds.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A sale of both Scott and Semenyo would require them to replace them, and any selling club would be aware that City would have money to spend. City are teetering above the relegation zone and would want to keep hold of their best players to give them the best chance of survival. Any sale could see the summer transfer window used as a way of reinvestment, rather than January.

"In terms of reinvesting money at this stage of the season we are very wary of doing that," said Pearson. "What normally happens is clubs come in and think they are doing you a favour by taking the player and they want them on the cheapest deal, then you wanna go out and buy somebody and the prices are massive.

He added: "It’s not a great window, it’s a short window and it’s not a great one to build in. If we get offers that the club feel are reasonable, acceptable and they help the longer term then the club will accept it. We want to keep our best players but we don’t want players who aren’t keen on staying here either. There is a counter argument with this and what is important for the players that there is interest or possible interest from other clubs, while they are here they are playing for us.

"They have an obligation to be at their best for us and that is difficult for youngsters. We’re talking about young men who are ambitious, they want to be successful here but players want to be successful. There has been some really good stories who have been developed here and have moved on to sometimes better things and sometimes there aren’t and the grass not always greener."

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.