Bradford City agree Blackburn Rovers deal on deadline day | OneFootball

Blackburn Rovers have agreed a deal with Bradford City for the sale of Joe Hilton.

Bradford City have reportedly agreed a deal with Blackburn Rovers to sign goalkeeper Joe Hilton.

That is according to Pete O'Rourke, who has outlined this Valley Parade incoming in a post on X (Formerly Twitter).

The Bantams are presently one of a number of clubs in League Two targeting a top-three finish, with Saturday's defeat to AFC Wimbledon leaving them three points off third-placed Notts County.

This month, Graham Alexander has been very busy in the transfer market and has brought in a whole host of new faces to try and bolster their hopes of a return to League One.

Hilton appears to be the next arrival at City, and while he may not displace Sam Walker, who has been in good form this season, he provides a younger goalkeeping option alongside the experienced 39-year-old Colin Doyle.

Bradford set to sign Blackburn's Joe Hilton

As detailed above, O'Rourke is reporting that Bradford have agreed a deal to sign Hilton from Blackburn.

The 25-year-old has long been a backup option for Rovers and has made just one appearance during his time at Ewood Park, a 4-3 win over Walsall in the EFL Cup.

His current contract with Blackburn is set to expire at the end of this campaign, but it appears that John Eustace has made the decision to let him depart six months in advance.

Hilton will likely be glad of this and will be hoping for some more frequent first-team action with the Bantams.

Joe Hilton can provide Walker with competition

At 25 years old, Hilton is particularly short on footballing experience, having only appeared 27 times for a professional outfit during his career. Most of these came at Hamilton Academical, where he conceded 25 goals and kept seven clean sheets in 23 appearances.

Most recently, he had a loan spell at Robbie Savage's Macclesfield Town in the Northern Premier League, but making the jump to League Two will be a significant step up in his career.

What it could offer him is a genuine opportunity to compete for the number one spot, with Hilton challenging Walker for the starting role.

Alexander's current first-choice goalkeeper is 33 years old, raising the question of whether Bradford have signed Hilton with the future in mind. If so, it could prove to be a shrewd piece of business.