Leicester City defender Lewis Brunt is a target for Mansfield Town, where he earned a promotion last season.
The 23-year-old, who came through the ranks at Aston Villa as a youngster, had a successful season in League Two with the Stags as they finally achieved promotion after a decade with the basement boys. He’s now a permanent target for Nigel Clough, with the former Burton manager telling Mansfield and Chad that an offer has already been lodged.
“We have also opened preliminary negotiations with Leicester City over the permanent signing of Lewis Brunt,” said Clough, who has also managed Derby and Sheffield United. “That is in its very early stages, so we will see how that goes.”
Brunt was an integral part of the Stags side that finished third, making 33 starts in the league. It was his first real exposure to senior football, after coming through at Aston Villa. He played for his parent club’s Under 21 side three times in the EFL Trophy, the last of those outings being an 8-1 humiliation against Sunderland in September 2020.
Following his release from Villa, he joined Leicester City, making his senior debut in the FA Cup. He appeared twice for the Foxes in the Premier League, against Spurs in May 2022 and Nottingham Forest in January 2023.
At the beginning of last season, the central defender joined Mansfield and thrived at Field Mill. He scored twice for the Stags and is now being lined up for a permanent switch. Given that he penned a new deal in 2022, set to run until the summer of 2025, he will likely cost Clough a fee.
Clough confirmed that Brunt isn’t the only player he’s targetting early, with offers in for others.
“We are getting close with a couple more signings,” he added. “We have offers in to two of our first choices at the moment and are awaiting replies. Four or five or something like that coming in would be great.”
Mansfield were promoted in third place this season, six points clear of MK Dons in fourth. It was their first promotion since emerging from the National League in 2013 and marks a return to the third tier for the first time since 2003.
Writer’s View
Mansfield are an oddity. They’ve always had good backing from chairman John Radford but have often struggled to live up to their almost incessant placing amongst the favourites for promotion. Then, from nowhere, they earned a promotion in a season when others were much more fancied.
Signing Brunt certainly feels like a good move. He’s had a solid campaign in League Two, so stepping into League One, on loan or permanently, is an obvious move. If they can bag him on a permanent deal, it means any progress he makes this season will earn Mansfield a possible future fee rather than Leicester.
