Blackpool FC want Jerry Yates deal: Oxford United, Preston North End & Leyton Orient should try hijack deal | OneFootball

The Swansea City striker looks set to be on the move this summer.

Blackpool are reportedly interested in a reunion with Swansea City striker Jerry Yates this summer.

The 28-year-old striker enjoyed a superb three-year spell with the Tangerines between 2020-2023, during which he made over 130 appearances and scored just shy of 50 goals for the club.

He was purchased by Swansea City from Blackpool in the summer of 2023, but after one season with the Swans, he would spend last term out on loan with Championship rivals Derby County.

Yates scored 10 goals and provided four assists in 42 league games for the Rams in 2024/25, but there are now question marks over his long-term future as a Swansea player.

A report from WalesOnline on Thursday revealed that Swansea would prefer to sell the centre-forward this summer, with Blackpool understood to be one of a host of clubs interested in doing a deal.

Football League World takes a look at three EFL clubs who should rival the Seasiders for his signature.

Oxford United

After an excellent first season back at Championship level in 25 years last season, Oxford United were able to register a 17th-placed finish and secure their second tier status.

With Gary Rowett now leading the club into his first full season in charge at The Kassam Stadium in 2025/26, the U's will no doubt be looking to build on their exploits of last term, and will perhaps be aiming to move closer to a mid-table finish.

In order to do that, however, they may need to bolster their firepower in attack, with Greg Leigh and Mark Harris both finishing the season as joint top-scorers with six each.

As such, Rowett may need another centre-forward to really push Harris in particular, and sharpen his cutting edge in attack sufficiently to ensure he's got enough goals in the side to really push on next year.

With Yates having bagged double-figures in the Championship last season, he's proven himself to be a steady source of goals at second tier level, and he could be a really shrewd signing for a club like Oxford.

Preston North End

Having narrowly avoided relegation to League One by one point last season, Preston North End will be keen to ensure they aren't sweating over their Championship status come the final day of the 25/26 campaign.

However, having lost 12-goal striker from last term in the shape of Emil Riis, Lilywhites boss Paul Heckingbottom may need to restock his attacking arsenal.

The club have signed Daniel Jebbison on a season-long loan deal from Bournemouth, but he's yet to look like a player capable of scoring goals at second tier level, and as such, his capture may not be enough.

With Heckingbottom tending to deploy two strikers, adding another solid goalscorer at Championship level in Yates - on what would surely be a kind of transfer fee that Preston could work with - could really boost their chances of an improved attacking output next season.

Ched Evans has now adopted a player-coach role with the club, and Will Keane is also now 32 and coming off the back of a four-goal season in all competitions last term.

Leyton Orient

24/25 was an excellent season for Leyton Orient, finishing sixth in League One before suffering play-off final heartbreak to Charlton Athletic at Wembley Stadium.

However, a big reason for Orient's success last term was the form of centre-forward Charlie Kelman, who bagged 27 goals in 61 total appearances for the club whilst on loan from QPR, with his 21 league goals being enough to crown him as the division's golden boot winner.

The 23-year-old is now back at Loftus Road, and has been linked with a move to Championship side West Brom this summer.

So, replacing him is a key priority for Richie Wellens this summer, and in Yates, he could have the ideal solution.

Having bagged £1.5m with the sale of Ethan Galbraith to Swansea City, that's the sort of transfer fee that could be around about what it takes to sign Yates from the Swans.

They could lean on that sale of Galbraith with a 'we helped you out, now you can help us' proposition, and having lost Dan Agyei to Turkish side Kocaelispor too, the addition of a new centre-forward really would be a massive boost for the O's.

The club have signed free agent striker Aaron Connolly after the 25-year-old left Millwall this summer, but the Republic of Ireland international has really struggled for form and goals in recent years, with failed moves to the likes of Middlesbrough, Venezia, Sunderland and Millwall in recent times.

Yates hit 20 goals the last time he was in League One with Blackpool in 2020/21, and still in the prime years of his career at 28, he could fill the large goalscoring boots left by Kelman very well indeed.