German club identify Cardiff City and Swansea City players as transfer targets | OneFootball

It seems as though Hertha Berlin are keeping a close eye on the Championship in the lead-up to the summer transfer window.

That's after a report from Bild claimed that two players currently playing in English football's second-tier, are currently on the radar of the German side.

It looks as though Hertha will be playing in the 2.Bundesliga again next season, with the club all but out of the race for promotion to the top-flight, and well clear of the relegation zone.

As a result, they are seemingly already planning their summer transfer business, which could involve two individuals currently plying their trade in the Championship.

Cardiff and Swansea players targeted

According to this latest update, Hertha are looking to add a winger to their side this summer, and have a three-man shortlist of potential targets.

Top of that list is Josh Bowler, who is currently on loan at Cardiff City from Nottingham Forest. This is his third loan move since joining his parent club in the summer of 2022, and he is yet to play for the Premier League side.

The 25-year-old has scored four goals and provided two assists in 37 appearances in all competitions for the Bluebirds this season.

As things stand, there are two years remaining on his contract with Forest, securing his future at The City Ground until the end of the 2025/26 season.

Another Championship winger on that shortlist is Swansea City's Przemyslaw Placheta. The Pole only joined the Swans in the January transfer window, signing from Championship rivals Norwich City.

He has since made 10 appearances for the club, although he is yet to score or provide an assist.

Placheta only signed a contract with Swansea until the end of this season, meaning he could available on a free transfer in the summer.

The third name on that list of targets for Hertha is reported to be Shakhtar Donetsk's Oleksiy Kashchuk.

Cardiff and Swansea set for mid-table Championship finishes

Both Cardiff and Swansea are now guaranteed to be playing Championship football again next season.

With just two games of the season to go, Cardiff are 11th in the table, ten points adrift of the play-off places, 16 clear of the relegation zone.

Swansea meanwhile are 14th in the current standings, six points worse off than their Welsh rivals, but still well clear of the bottom three.

Saturday afternoon sees Cardiff host Middlesbrough in the Welsh capital, while Swansea travel to Carrow Road to face Norwich.

Hertha interest may not concern Cardiff and Swansea too much

There could be an argument that this interest in Bowler and Placheta may not be a major worry for these two Championship clubs.

Bowler is currently only on loan at Cardiff, meaning they would have had to replace him anyway, and ought to have plans in place to do that.

As a result, it ought to make little difference to them if he returns to Nottingham Forest, or moves on to another club such as Hertha Berlin.

For Swansea meanwhile, Placheta has had a somewhat limited impact and involvement across the course of his time with the club so far.

Consequently, he may have struggled to earn the offer of a new contract from the Swans anyway, meaning he too may have been set to move on in the summer regardless of this interest.

With that in mind, it may be intriguing to see where these two players are playing once the transfer window closes, and indeed, if either of them does end up at Hertha Berlin.