Bristol Rovers have rejected a bid from fellow League One rivals Huddersfield Town for midfielder Antony Evans, according to the Bristol Post.
In a season that saw the Gas struggle and finish in 15th position, the 25-year-old was a rare shining light. He managed 52 games in all competitions last season and managed to score 10 goals whilst also assisting nine times. He was also named Player of the Season, but is now set to enter the final year of his current contract.
After a mixed first campaign at the Memorial Stadium, the former Everton youth man was outstanding last term and it was always expected that there would be interest from elsewhere.
Evans has been very much a fan favourite since he arrived at Rovers three years ago, joining from German side Paderborn and has since gone on to become a crucial asset as they stabilise in the third tier following their promotion from League Two in 2022.
Whether or not the Terriers plan to follow up with an improved bid is yet to be seen, but if Rovers don’t sell Evans this summer they run the risk of him leaving on a free transfer this time next year.
Portsmouth, who gained promotion to the Championship last season as League One champions have also been linked with the attcking midfielder. Speaking about Evans’ contract situation back in May, manager Matt Taylor told BBC Radio Bristol:
“We’re talking about it now throughout the course of the season. Those discussions and offers have gone out so that’s happened.”
“We’re not naive enough to let a player who’s your best player go into the last year of the deal without even having a conversation. So, as with everything else football-related, I think we’ll learn a lot about each other in the next eight weeks.”
“We want Antony to be here. I think it’s important to say that he didn’t start the season in the team and that’s not my doing, he worked his way back into the team and has then been consistent and then to get all of those awards, it’s a bit like Chris Martin. Probably our two best and biggest performers didn’t start the season either at the club or in the team which is surreal to say.”
“Credit to them both for seeing through a difficult moment and then producing and that’s what football is. It’s about producing performances and, whether it’s Chris’ goals or Antony’s goals and assists, they’ve just been consistent in relation to that and we hope that that continues for a long time.”
Writer’s View
No disrespect intended to Rovers here, but Huddersfield is the bigger club. As is the case with all footballers, Evans will want to play as high as he can and he would have more chance with the Terriers as they aim for an immediate return to the Championship.
With his contract coming into its last year, it would be more beneficial for the Gas to work with Town and get a fee for the player whilst they still can. A bidding war between Huddersfield and Portsmouth isn’t out of the question though and Taylor’s side will be aware of that possibility.
