Bristol City transfer ‘confirmed in 24 hours’ as Bournemouth join Alex Scott race

Bristol City are closing in on the signing of Haydon Roberts after agreeing on a deal, according to reports.

The 21-year-old is set to become the third arrival of the summer following the signings of Rob Dickie and Ross McCrorie from QPR and Aberdeen. He was not offered a new deal by Brighton, and that means once he completes his move, he will join on a free transfer, which is an astute piece of transfer business.

Football Insider report that a deal has been agreed between City and Roberts' representatives and that the transfer will be 'confirmed in the next 24 hours', which is when the transfer window opens. The report adds that City moved quickly to beat off interest from other clubs interested in Roberts, with one expected to be his former loan club Derby County.

Roberts spent last season on loan at Pride Park, and made 46 appearances across four competitions. He registered two goals and three assists, and kept 14 clean sheets. He played mainly as a left-back, and will provide competition for Cameron Pring, but is also capable of playing centre-back which is an area that Nigel Pearson was keen to strengthen in given the uncertainty over Tomas Kalas’ future.

Want to know more about City’s impending arrival? Read the Derby County view on Haydon Roberts in which DerbyWorld’s football writer delivers his verdict on if he’s ready for the Championship and what kind of player he is.

In other news, Bournemouth have now joined the race to sign £25m rated Alex Scott, but like the other clubs, are being put off the £25m asking price set by the Bristol City board. The Daily Mail report that the Cherries have joined the list of clubs, but £25m is putting them off. Wolves and West Ham are said to have kept a 'regular check' on the 19-year-old who last month played for England in the Under-20 World Cup. Scott is currently on a break and is expected to have his pre-season schedule altered for him, along with the other players who have been called up for international duty this week.

Scott was once at Bournemouth, but later moved on to Southampton's academy, before he was released, which allowed him to play for Guernsey's mens team, and then he was snapped up by City, where he is approaching 100 appearances. Liverpool had also been linked with a move for Scott this summer, but following their recent addition of Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton, it is unclear whether they still hold an interest.