Loan deal for £750,000-rated Oshilaja unlikely
Deji Oshilaja of AFC Wimbledon was an Ipswich Town target on deadline day. Picture: PA - Credit: PA Archive/PA Images
AFC Wimbledon are unlikely to entertain loan offers for Ipswich Town target Deji Oshilaja after the Blues were unwilling to reach his £750,000 asking price on deadline day, we understand.
The Blues turned their attention to the 25-year-old after negotiations regarding Blackpool’s Curtis Tilt reached a dead end, with Ipswich finding it similarly difficult to reach an agreement with the Dons.
Ipswich manager Paul Hurst has described the League One club’s valuation as ‘too high’ while insisting the fact the player is in the final year of his contract, and thus can begin negotiating with other clubs from January, also played a part.
It’s understood the Blues submitted an initial bid for the central defender at the start of the week before returning to the negotiating table on deadline day, but left without reaching an agreement with the London club.
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The Blues’ final offer has been described as ‘substantial’ but was not enough to meet the Dons’ £750,000 asking price.
There is a sense Wimbledon are unlikely to entertain a loan offer with a view to a permanent move, with that window now open until the end of August.
A number of other Championship clubs are thought to have shown strong interest in Oshilaja during the summer, with the defender out of contract at the end of the season.
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“We were interested, yeah, but a deal couldn’t be done,” Hurst said after yesterday’s game with Rotherham.
“We felt the valuation was too high for a player who is available on a free contract in January. It’s very easy for people to say ‘pay whatever it takes’, but you’ve got to feel like a fair deal has been agreed and we didn’t feel that was the case.”
Asked if that might be a deal that could be revisited in the coming days, Hurst said: “We’ll see. I’m not sure whether a loan deal will be happening there. Let’s see what these next few weeks bring.”
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Hurst has said he would like to bring in three new players between now and the end of the loan window, with centre half an area of obvious need, but only has two vacant loan spots.
Trevoh Chalobah and Tayo Edun are on temporary deals from Chelsea and Fulham respectively, while Janoi Donacien is on loan from Accrington Stanley but will make his move permanent once work permit issues are resolved.
