Football
Exclusive: Exclusive: Luca Connell Transfer Saga Rumbles On as Wycombe Eye £1m Deal
Wycombe Wanderers must pay at least £750,000 to sign Barnsley’s Luca Connell, a top transfer target for boss Mike Dodds. Talks have been ongoing but no formal bid has been accepted yet. Connell is a talented midfielder with Championship potential, making him a valuable asset for any team.
Manchester United v Barnsley - Carabao Cup Third Round by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA | Getty Images
Wycombe Wanderers must pay between £750,000 and £1m to sign Barnsley’s Luca Connell, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
The former Republic of Ireland under-21 international is Wycombe boss Mike Dodds’ top transfer target this summer, after emerging as one of the finest midfielders in League One.
Midfielder Connell has two years left on his Barnsley contract and starred last season for the South Yorkshire club.
Transfer Saga
Sources close to both Wanderers and Connell’s parent club rubbished that Dodds’ employers have had a £1.3m bid accepted for his services.
And, in a fresh twist, SportsBoom can reveal a figure below that amount is likely to be acceptable to Oakwell’s owners.
Talks between Barnsley and Wanderers have become increasingly protracted in recent weeks, with the latter’s interest in the 24-year-old tracing back to almost the end of last term.
Although all three parties involved believe a deal is still likely, the speed of the negotiations are proving a frustration - particularly given the false narrative which has developed around Connell’s probable fee.
Connell's Career So Far
Having represented Celtic and Bolton Wanderers earlier in his career, recruiting Connell would be a major coup for Wanderers given that he could comfortably play at Championship level.
Having made over 100 appearances for Barnsley, the Liverpool-born player featured 46 times for Barnsley during the 2024/25 campaign, scoring twice in the process.
He took part in both of their matches against Wanderers last season and also boasts a loan spell at Queens Park on his CV.
Dodds needs to invest in a new defensive midfielder after it was confirmed that Josh Scowen is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines with an ACL injury.
Connell is still training with Barnsley’s first team squad and has yet to discuss personal terms.
He played 46 times for the Tykes last season and chipped in with a couple of goals as the club finished twelfth in League One.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.