"It worries me" - Derby County urged to swerve signing player who was at Birmingham City last season | OneFootball

FLW's Derby County fan pundit weighs in on the links to Luke Harris.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Derby County are one of the clubs interested in Fulham midfielder Luke Harris, according to reports from Dharmesh Sheth at Sky Sports.

Charlton Athletic, who have joined the Rams in the Sky Bet Championship after being promoted through the play-offs, are also looking to recruit the Wales youth international.

Harris has 12 months left on his current deal at Craven Cottage, with the option of a further year, and spent last season on loan at League One champions Birmingham City.

He struggled to make an impact at the Blues, being involved in just four goals across his 29 league appearances.

"It worries me..." - claim made on Derby County target

FLW asked Derby fan pundit Shaun Woodward what he thought of the links, after the youngster won promotion with Birmingham, but struggled to make an impact in front of goal.

He said: "It's a difficult one for me because he has hardly set the world alight at Birmingham at a lower level last season.

"That is difficult because Birmingham were flying, and if he can't really produce at a lower level in a team that is winning most games comfortably, it worries me that at the next step up in a team that is likely to struggle a bit more than Birmingham did in League One whether he is going to find his feet.

"However, he's got more experience now. 20 is a good age, he's starting to come into his own. If John Eustace thinks that he sees potential in someone, and he can get them on the training ground, and work them to fit a system, then who knows.

"It could be his breakout season, so it's hard to write someone off before they have been given a chance, because we have done that before with players and they have proven to be really good.

"If you look at the stats, you would probably say he is not what we need right now, but we have to put our trust in John Eustace to know what he wants."

It would be a big step up for Fulham's Luke Harris

The 20-year-old, who has played seven times for Fulham's first team, was not a standout performer in one of the best teams the EFL have ever seen. Birmingham blew the rest of the competition away in League One, with no shortage of players hitting big goalscoring and attacking contribution milestones through the campaign that saw the team accrue more than 100 points.

Harris was not one of them, and asking him to make the step up into the Championship following a generally underwhelming return may be a difficult ask.

However, in Eustace's Derby and Nathan Jones' Charlton circling, Harris clearly has some high-profile admirers this summer. There is always a reason why top coaches are hunting for a player in Harris' profile, who has perhaps not seen his stats match what is strong potential.

As a versatile option, being able to play on the wings as well as in the centre of midfield, Harris can provide balance and variety to a Derby side that may need help in the 2025/26 campaign. He may be a good pick-up, even if his returns so far do not jump off the page.