Bristol City eyeing Blackpool FC transfer

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict’ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Bristol City are one of several sides eyeing a move for Blackpool forward Jerry Yates this summer.

That is according to The Sun, who report that the Robins, along with West Brom, Coventry, Ipswich and Luton, are all keen on a deal for the forward.

Yates netted 14 goals in the Championship in a struggling Blackpool side as they were relegated from the division.

It is said the Seasiders will demand a fee of £4 million for his services.

With the above links in mind, then, we asked three of our FLW writers for their verdict on whether this is a deal worth doing for Bristol City.

Simmey Hannifin-Donaldson

In isolation, signing Jerry Yates would be a good idea for Bristol City.

The forward demonstrated that he knows how to find the back of the net this past season and could add some real attacking edge to the Bristol City frontline.

However, Blackpool’s reported asking price of £4 million may be a bit steep for the Robins.

It would make Yates one of their most expensive transfers ever, and you’d have to question whether or not he would be worth it.

Still, with Chris Martin and Antoine Semenyo having left earlier this season, there is certainly room for another attacker at Ashton Gate.

James Reeves

Yates would be an excellent signing for Bristol City.

While the Robins do have goals in their team, they lack a clinical striker up front and Yates could be the perfect solution.

Yates scored 15 goals for relegated Blackpool this season and if provided with service from the likes of Andreas Weimann, Tommy Conway and Anis Mehmeti, it would no surprise to see his return increase.

With the Robins set to win the race for Joe Bryan and Ross McCrorie, landing Yates’ signature would be another statement signing for Nigel Pearson’s side.

There may be some question marks about whether City can meet Blackpool’s high valuation, but there is no doubt that Yates has proven himself as a quality Championship striker and would be an ideal addition for the club.

Josh Cole

This could turn out to be a great bit of business by the Robins if they are able to win the race for Yates’ signature this summer.

Despite the fact that he was playing in a poor Blackpool side during the 2022/23 season, the forward still managed to provide an impressive total of 18 direct goal contributions in the Championship.

The Robins will need to bolster their options in this particular area of the pitch following the departures of Chris Martin and Antoine Semenyo earlier this year, and thus Yates could turn out to be the perfect fit.

Given that the forward is attracting a great deal of interest ahead of the upcoming window, City will have to act quickly in terms of this particular pursuit.