Plymouth and Bristol Rovers tracking Liverpool’s Oludare Olufunwa

Plymouth Argyle and Bristol Rovers are among the clubs keeping tabs on Liverpool centre-back Oludare Olufunwa this summer ahead of a potential transfer move, according to a report from Football Insider.

It is also claimed that clubs in Scotland – namely St. Mirren and Kilmarnock – are also keen on Olufunwa, who will depart Liverpool this summer after just a year at Anfield.

The 21-year-old is not set to be short of offers however as League One’s champions in the form of Argyle and a third tier club for next season in Rovers both eye him up.

Who is Oludare Olufunwa?

Despite being nearly 22 years of age, Olufunwa is yet to make an appearance for a senior football club.

He started off at Southampton, making his under-18’s debut in 2017 at the age of 16 but struggled for game-time until a year later, where he played mainly at right-back for the same age group but also the under-23’s at the back end of the 2018-19 campaign.

Olufunwa was then used more as a centre-back in the following years but he could not make the step up through the Saints youth ranks and into the senior setup, playing 15 times for their under-21’s in the 2021-22 season before departing at the end of that campaign.

He managed to win himself a contract with Liverpool though for a year after impressing on trial last summer, but he was able to rack up just six appearances in the Premier League 2 competition and EFL Trophy before he ended up on the club’s released list when it was announced earlier in the week.

Plymouth Argyle and Bristol Rovers keen on Oludare Olufunwa

Both Plymouth and Bristol Rovers are in different divisions next season so have different aspirations, but both need to strengthen their squads accordingly ahead of the 2023-24 season.

Argyle play with three centre-backs normally under Steven Schumacher and with only three currently under contract at Home Park for next season, there’s a need to add to that area of the pitch and Olofunwa could provide good backup until he develops and is ready for Championship football.

Bristol Rovers similarly have little in the way of centre-back options available to them going into pre-season, so in the coming weeks they will need to sign either permanent or loan options to bolster Joey Barton’s squad.

And whilst Olufunwa doesn’t have any senior experience, the Memorial Stadium could be a good place for the 21-year-old to kickstart his first-team career in the EFL.