Derby County could be set to lose the race to sign former loanee Haydon Roberts on a permanent deal, with Championship side Bristol City recently opening talks to sign the defender, according to Bristol World.
The 21-year-old, who enjoyed a successful loan spell with the Rams last season, is a free agent after leaving Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion at the expiration of his contract and with Derby interested in making Roberts’ stay at Pride Park a permanent one, the Robins of the Championship are looking to add to their defensive options after the recent acquisition of QPR defender Rob Dickie.
https://twitter.com/BristolWorldUK/status/1666002257823899650?s=20
Who is Haydon Roberts?
Capable of playing as a left wing-back as well as a centre-half, Haydon Roberts has been with Brighton and Hove Albion ever since coming through the academy ranks at the club, with his professional first-team debut coming in the Carabao Cup against Aston Villa in September 2019, in which he scored Brighton’s only goal of the game as they fell to a 3-1 defeat.
Roberts would make a further two appearances for Brighton’s first team before eventually making the move to Rochdale on a season-long loan deal in October 2020 for regular game time. During his brief spell at the Crown Oil Arena, Roberts made 26 appearances for the club in a season in which the Dale would be relegated to League Two, finishing 21st in the league.
Following a further three appearances for the Seagulls after returning from his loan at Rochdale in the 2021/22 season, Roberts would go out on loan again, this time, on a season-long loan to Derby County for the 2022/23 season as they aimed to return to the Championship at the first time of asking following relegation from the second division in the previous campaign.
Quickly becoming a fan favourite for the Rams, Roberts and Derby County would eventually miss out on a place in the League One playoffs by one point, with Peterborough United narrowly beating the club to a sixth-place finish with the 21-year-old making 46 appearances for Derby in all competitions throughout the season, scoring twice and keeping 14 clean sheets.
A good fit for Bristol City?
Bristol City are on the lookout to boost their defensive options this summer and the club has already made a start in strengthening in that department, signing QPR defender Rob Dickie.
With the potential addition of Haydon Roberts to the squad, even though his main position is playing as centre-half, he is also very capable of playing as a left-back as he did during his loan spell at Derby County.
The 21-year-olds’ versatility could become a welcome addition to the Robins as he could provide cover for left-back Cameron Pring, as well as being an option in the heart of the defence for cover for the likes of Rob Dickie, Zak Vyner and Rob Atkinson.
Writer’s View
It’s clear to see Derby County are clear admirers of the 21-year-old defender following his loan spell at the club last season, but the potential lure of the Championship could be too much for a player like Haydon Roberts to turn down.
As much as it would be a blow to Derby County, I think the signing of Roberts to Bristol City has the potential to be an excellent signing. He now has that experience playing in the EFL and if he was to go to Ashton Gate, he gives Nigel Pearson a different option as he could utilise his versatility.
Roberts is exactly the type of signing that Bristol City could be craving as they’re looking to put together a young but experienced squad in a potential bid to improve on their 14th-place finish last season.
