Report: Bolton Wanderers under pressure to sell Luca Connell amid £300k Brighton bid

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Brighton and Hove Albion have been linked with Bolton Wanderers’ Luca Connell.

According to a report by Bolton News, Bolton Wanderers are under pressure to sell top youngster Luca Connell amid a fresh bid from Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion.

It is said in the report that Brighton saw two bids for the versatile midfielder turned down before the transfer deadline but now it’s suggested another £300,000 bid has been made and Bolton could cash in.

The Trotters are in financial difficulties and with Connell being a second-year scholar, they could sell him outside the transfer window or seek compensation should he leave when his contract expires this summer.

Connell came through the youth ranks at Bolton and has gone on to feature for the first-team in recent weeks, playing the full 90 minutes at Championship promotion challengers Sheffield United.

The 17-year-old was predominantly a defender but has featured for Bolton in a holding midfield role. He has averaged an impressive 2.3 tackles and two interceptions per game.

Brighton reportedly aren’t the only Premier League side tracking the youngster, as the Seagulls are joined by Bolton’s Lancashire rivals Burnley who are also cited in the report as a team taking a strong interest in him.

Bolton may feel in their current position they would benefit more by selling him now rather than risk losing him for a smaller compensation fee in the summer when his second-year scholar contract expires.

But, with the club in the middle of a Championship survival scrap, Phil Parkinson’s side stand a better chance of staying up by keeping hold of the player despite his relative lack of first-team experience.