Who is Will Fish? The Man Utd man wanted by Sunderland, Middlesbrough, and Ipswich Town | OneFootball

A number of clubs look set to battle it out for the services of Will Fish this summer, with the Manchester United academy graduate continuing to impress for Hibernian this season.

HITC recently reported that Ipswich Town and Middlesbrough are interested in the towering centre back, as well as Sheffield United and Sunderland, who is currently in his second year on loan at Easter Road.

With plenty of potential suitors for the 20-year-old, Football League World explores more about the potential EFL summer recruit, and how he will fare if he makes the move to The Championship.

Will Fish transfer updates

Fish has been a standout performer for a Hibs side who find themselves midtable in the Scottish Premiership table so far this season, with his strong performances at the heart of defence earning himself plenty of admirers.

The defender has already earned himself international recognition with appearances for England at U17, U18 and U19 level, and found the net on his U17 in a 2-1 defeat to Germany.

Accoring to the official Manchester United website, Fish has a contract that runs until the summer of 2025 with the club option of a further year, but with the task of ousting Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans for a first team berth, he may be looking elsewhere for game time.

The defender has turned out for his parent-side just the once in his career; entering the field as a substitute in a 2-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in May 2021. Two games on loan at then-National League side Stockport County followed the season after, before making his big break north of the border.

After joining Hibernian for the first time in September 2022, the centre back forced his way into the starting lineup for the first time in a 1-0 defeat to Dundee United, before going on to make 21 appearances in a green shirt throughout the campaign, keeping seven clean sheets in the process.

Another seven shutouts have followed this season from 30 league appearances, including a heroic effort to keep current Scottish Champions Celtic at bay in a 0-0 draw at Easter Road in October, further highlighting his ability to keep top talent at bay.

How Will Fish fits in at a Championship side

It comes as no surprise that Kieran McKenna and Michael Carrick are two of the interested parties in bringing Fish to their respective clubs in the summer; the two young coaches both have experience as part of the Manchester Untied backroom staff, and will know exactly how much potential he has at his feet.

Ipswich’s creaking defence has played a part in their recent drop off in form, having fallen into the playoff places after a flying start to the season; and a player like Fish would fit right in at the heart of the Tractor Boys’ backline.

With both Boro and Town favouring a progressive style of attack that focuses on defenders’ ability with the ball at his feet, a player like Fish would be just as important in possession as out of it.

FBRef shows that the young defender ranked among the top players in the league when it comes to interceptions this season, with only Richard Jensen of Aberdeen making more than Fish’s 37 to date.

That sort of intuition and forward thinking is exactly what makes a top level defender, and with his ability with the ball at his feet he can be the springboard for starting attacks for his own side once retrieving possession.

As the season draws to a close the interest in Fish is only likely to intensify and we are likely to have a bidding war on our hands for the Manchester United prospect.

Whoever gets their hands on him will be a lucky side; physical, ball-playing defenders are worth their weight in gold in the Championship, and he would be a valuable asset to any promotion-chasing team.