Exeter City have opened talks with Scottish outfit Dundee United for winger Ilmari Niskanen, as reported by The Courier.
The Finland international is expected to leave the club this summer to seek regular first-team opportunities and maintain his regular place in the national team. A fee is expected to be involved in any deal which would take the 25-year-old to League One, with just one year remaining on his contract with the Tangerines. United boss Jim Goodwin admitted that the club could lose Niskanen this summer, with the winger reportedly concerned that the level of football could impact his international prospects.
The Scottish outfit would cut a high amount off their wage bill this summer should they sell Niskanen. The winger is still earning Premiership wages as they adjust to life in the Championship following their relegation last season from the Scottish Premiership. Niskanen returned from injury in the Scottish League Cup game against Falkirk, playing 26 minutes in that tie as the Tangerines secured a 1-0 victory. However, the Finnish winger did not feature in their first Championship game of the season.
Exeter City have already added one winger to the team, signing Dion Rankine on loan from Premier League side Chelsea. But the Grecians’ boss expressed his desire to keep improving following their impressive victory over Wycombe Wanderers on the opening day of the League One season this past weekend.
Niskanen made 61 appearances for Dundee United during his time there, scoring twice and assisting five times. The winger is also capped for Finland 14 times, scoring once for his country. The 25-year-old enjoyed a good start to life at United but has often been criticised since that beginning, with some saying he has lacked an end product.
Writer’s View
Exeter enjoyed a solid performance this past weekend and will be looking to build on that. Despite their victory, the defence was the biggest part of that performance, and they will want to add more goals to their game. They still have a few weeks to add to their squad, and Caldwell will be hoping he can get the best out of the Finnish international to bring that to the side.
