Bournemouth are preparing a bid of £1m for Colchester United striker, Sammie Szmodics who has scored 11 goals for the League Two side this season. The 22-year-old has been in prolific form for the U’s and is a key part of their promotion battle to League One.
Colchester’s form has dipped in recent times with the side just registering 2 points in their last three fixtures. A 1-4 loss to Cheltenham Town saw the John McGreal’s team drop to the 9th spot of the points table. They already have lost Freddie Sears to Ipswich Town 2 years back and the loss of another goal scorer will severely hurt their chances of moving up the table.
Szmodics primarily trained as an attacking midfielder was born in Colchester itself and joined the academy at a young age of only seven. Climbing up through the club ranks was not easy but Szmodics toiled his way into the U18 side and became a regular starter.
A local boy with his hearts set for his hometown club, the 22-year-old has netted the ball an impressive 22 times on 97 occasions for the club along with registering 5 assists to his name.
The man has come a long way and is well deserving of a call-up to the big leagues.
Bournemouth are going through their own struggles to escape relegation by the end of the season. Just a point above the bottom three, Eddie Howe’s men started the season off decently but have fallen off the track in recent times.
Three consecutive losses to elite sides like Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City in December really dented their confidence.
But they have bounced back with a win and two draws in their last three fixtures and are looking promising now that the second half of the season already upon us.
The January transfer window can turn out to be the turning point of their current season and additions are necessary going forward. Szmodics’ talents will be well utilised in the attacking lineup by Howe, who was sweating profusely over the injury to Joshua King against the side’s 3-3 draw to West Ham United on Boxing Day.
Although the Cherries are filled with strikers at the moment, a player like Szmodics can make all the difference. He is well adept to take up the number ten role behind a lone striker and link up the attacks. However, making a shift to the Premier League is a huge leap. Can he hit find his feet in the top-tier English football?
