Notts County, Fleetwood Town, Walsall, and Port Vale have all submitted contract offers to Carlisle United striker Matthew Dennis, according to Football League World.
As confirmed by their retained list, Carlisle have offered Dennis a new contract at the club, after the striker scored six goals and grabbed an assist in 14 League Two games.
The 23-year-old joined the Cumbrians on a short-term deal in February after being released by MK Dons.
Multiple Options in League One and Two
Following Dennis’ impressive second half of the campaign during a relegation scrap, it’s no wonder multiple clubs have tabled offers for him.
Promoted side Port Vale are the only League One side out of the list, and have lost loanee duo Antwione Hackford and Jemiah Umolu, who made a combined 41 appearances last season. That leaves just two strikers at Vale, Jayden Stockley and Lorent Tolaj, as the club look to establish itself as a third-tier side once again.
League Two sides Notts County and Walsall will be hoping to strengthen ahead of the 2025/26 campaign after failed play-off campaigns, with key players set to leave or have left.
According to sources, County are set to lose star striker David McGoldrick to League Two rivals MK Dons, who are managed by former Derby County manager Paul Warne, whilst Walsall are set to lose loanees Ellis Harrison and Ethan Wheatley, as well as potentially loosing experienced duo, Jamille Matt and Danny Johnson, who are both out of contract.
Fleetwood have said goodbye to loanee strikers Louie Marsh and Kobei Moore, who made 26 combined appearances last season, leaving again, just two strikers, Ronan Coughlan and Ryan Gradon; however, Coughlan is currently recovering from an Achilles tendon rupture he suffered in early January.
Dennis isn’t short of options after proving he can do it at this level, with four clubs tabling him offers, as well as an offer from Carlisle themselves; however, after relegation, they will be playing National League football next season.
A Difficult Decision To Make
With the striker only being 23, this decision on where to go next may prove to be a tricky one. Does he stay in Cumbria, with Mark Hughes, who managed to get the best out of him last season, in a slightly lower division, or does he take a risk, and fight for a place at another club who are playing at a higher level.
It’s clear that all the clubs who have made him an offer are in need of a new striker, but it’s making sure the move is right for him to progress further in his career.
Writer’s View
It’ll certainly be interesting to see what option Dennis chooses, whether he stays put and trust the process with Carlisle, or whether he decides to move on and make the step back up to League Two and potentially even League One.
With things not working out at MK Dons, you’d expect he’d be more careful with his club selection, hoping to not have a repeat of his time at Stadium MK.
