Brighton & Hove Albion are reportedly closing in on the capture of Blackburn Rovers striker Ben Brereton in a deal worth £20 million.
According to a report from the Mirror, Brighton & Hove Albion are set to reach an agreement with EFL Championship side Blackburn Rovers over the signing of Ben Brereton.
The forward spent close to seven years at the academy of Manchester United between 2006 and 2013 before moving to the Stoke City youth setup, where he stayed till 2015, following which he joined Nottingham Forest. It is with the Reds that Brereton made his first-team breakthrough and made 57 appearances for the club, bagging nine goals in the process.
Brereton signed for Blackburn in the summer of 2018, initially on loan, before making the transfer permanent six months later. To date, the 22-year-old has made 111 appearances for the Championship side but has managed just 26 goals and ten assists so far. However, the striker, who represents Chile at the international level, has come into his own this season.
Indeed, of his 26 goals for the Lancashire-based outfit, 17 have come in the ongoing campaign, from just 22 Championship matches, with Brereton scoring once every 110 minutes in the English second division this term. The striker’s exploits have seen him pop up on the radars of clubs like Leeds United, Newcastle United and Southampton.
However, Brighton & Hove Albion seem poised to land the striker in the upcoming January transfer window in a deal worth £20 million. The Seagulls have made a lot of progress under Graham Potter’s tutelage, but the lack of a prolific goalscorer at the top has held them back since last season.
While Neal Maupay is a capable operator, he is not the most consistent forward going around. So, Brighton needed to add another option to their attacking contingent to support the likes of Maupay and Leandro Trossard. The Seagulls had been linked with a move for Cyle Larin recently, but it seems like Brereton is that man that will be landing at the Amex Stadium next month.
Brighton and Blackburn have developed a strong relationship after the Premier League club sent out a couple of players out on loan to Ewood Park. And, the two teams are now believed to be closing in on an agreement over a £20 million deal for the transfer of Brereton ahead of the January window.
It could turn out to be a busy winter at the Amex, with Brighton also believed to be inching closer to the capture of Polish wonderkid Kacper Kozlowski, although he could be loaned out for the rest of the season. The Seagulls are also keen on adding Joe Rodon from Tottenham Hotspur.
