"£3m to £5m" - Bristol City, Tommy Conway claim made as Celtic and Rangers lurk | OneFootball

'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Bristol City are open to cashing in on Tommy Conway this summer amid interest from the Premier League and Scotland.

According to Bristol Live, it has been decided that the Robins will look to sell the player in the upcoming transfer window if an appropriate offer arrives.

The striker is entering the final 12 months of his current contract, and the Championship side will want to avoid losing him for nothing in 2025.

It has been reported that owner Steve Lansdown has been heavily involved in the decision, who wants a resolution to this situation as quickly as possible.

However, it’s been claimed that Celtic and Rangers are willing to wait until next year to make an attempt to sign the 21-year-old, which would mean Bristol City will be owed just £300,000 in compensation.

Time for Bristol City to cash in on Conway

FLW’s Bristol City fan pundit Tom Sandy believes now is the time to cash in on the academy graduate, citing a lack of consistent goals as a reason why he is okay with a departure.

While he is reluctant to lose someone who has come through the ranks at the club, he understands their decision to look to generate a sale this summer.

“There is currently a lot of talk about Tommy Conway’s contract situation, his refusal to sign a new deal when his expires next season,” Sandy told Football League World.

“The general consensus surrounding the fans is that they are actually supportive of this idea.

“Tommy Conway is an academy product, he’s been a great servant for the club and he really seems to love playing for the badge, but when a player doesn’t want to set his long-term career at the club, you can see why fans aren’t too appreciative of what he’s done for us.

“While I’m not completely in agreement, the thought of just cashing in on him when he is an academy player doesn’t appeal to me the most, but I can see where people are coming from, and I can see why we would do that.

“So if I was given a choice today, yes or no, would I cash in on him? I would probably say yes, just because this season he has lacked in places.

“He has just five open-play goals this season in 39 appearances, in which 27 of those were starts.

“He’s also missed 10 big chances in the league, he’s scored five penalties which does take a lot of skill, it’s not easy to just put the ball away from 12 yards, but when you’re only scoring five open-play goals as an out-and-out number nine, and he’s only provided one assist, so it’s not like he’s picking up pieces in other parts of his game, it can be disappointing.

“You can see maybe that we would want to improve on that.”

Conway Premier League readiness verdict

Conway has also been linked with a move to Leicester City and Wolves, but Sandy is unsure whether the forward is ready to make the step up to the top flight.

“Likewise, is he ready for a big step up? I’m not sure,” he added.

“I don’t think he’s Premier League ready, a lot of Scottish clubs in for him, Celtic, Rangers, is he ready for them even? I’m not sure.

“But if they’re going to come in, they’re going to be ready to cough up some money and that might be something we want to cash in on.

“How much would I sell Conway for? Transfermarkt have him marked down as £4 million.

“Obviously, as a club, if we’re trying to force him out, and with only a year left on his contract, it’s going to bring his value down slightly.

“I would say £3m to £5m is the ballpark that we’re looking to sell him for, which obviously does sound a little bit disappointing.

“It’s not the highest amount, but if we’re going to reinvest that straight away, then bringing in a striker for £3 to 5 million would be a massive investment for the club, and it would be a real statement signing.

“While I think it’s not the greatest incoming for the club, if we’re going to reinvest it well then that’d be good.

“Conway is a good player when he has creative players around him, and he can definitely warrant that kind of price tag, but I’ve got down here this season that, per goal, he has 230 minutes played, so a goal every two-and-a-half games, which is just not good enough for a Championship level.

“He almost doesn’t suit Championship level, the physical game so much, as you can see from his FA Cup appearances where he scored in both games against West Ham, so that he would maybe prove he can step up to the Premier League.”

Conway’s importance to Bristol City

Conway has grown into an important part of the Bristol City squad in the last couple of seasons, having initially come through the academy during the 2020-21 campaign.

Over the last two terms, he has made 73 league appearances, including 52 starts, contributing 19 goals and four assists (all stats from Fbref).

His departure could be a blow to Liam Manning’s first team squad for next season, with the team aiming to improve on their 11th place finish in the table.

Conway sale this season is a sensible decision

Cashing in on Conway now is the right move for Bristol City as they will want to avoid losing him for next to nothing next year.

While he has scored goals in the Championship, his tally isn’t enough to justify the risk of keeping him for another 12 months.

If they can earn somewhere between £3 to 5 million for him, then that’s money that can be reinvested back into improving Manning’s squad.

That is money that could help bridge the 11-point gap to the top six from last season.