Luton Town striker Cauley Woodrow is wanted by Middlesbrough and Oxford United, as exclusively revealed by SportsBoom.
The experienced 30-year-old striker looks set for an immediate return to the Championship following Luton’s relegation.
Competition At Luton Is Fierce
Woodrow spent time on loan at Blackburn Rovers last season but failed to find the net in nine appearances before returning to Kenilworth Road to prepare for the upcoming season.
Hatters’ boss Matt Bloomfield has gone on record as saying he sees Woodrow as a player he could use this season, but the London side has already strengthened with a string of attacking options this summer.
Experienced frontman Nahki Wells has joined from Bristol City, while Jerry Yates has signed from Swansea City and Norwegian striker Lasse Nordas is tipped to feature this term as the club begins life back in League One.
West Ham’s highly-rated young striker Gideon Kodua has also joined the Hatters’ ranks, meaning Woodrow faces plenty of competition if he is going to force his way into Bloomfield’s plans.
The sale of Carlton Morris, their leading scorer for the past three seasons, to Derby County in the summer window looked to have given Woodrow a way into the starting lineup but the signings made already this summer could push him towards the Kenilworth Road exit.
Interest In Woodrow Hotting Up
The interest in the striker is thought to be increasing and he has previously been linked with a move to Wrexham, but the Welsh side has bolstered their firepower with several summer signings including Kieffer Moore in a big-money deal from Sheffield United.
Middlesbrough and Oxford United are said to be looking to see if they can tempt Woodrow away from Kenilworth Road, with his vast Championship experience a big draw.
However, Bloomfield stressed in a recent interview:
“Cauley’s situation is that he’s a very, very good footballer. He’s a really intelligent player.”
“He’s training very well at the moment and he’s someone who’s firmly in our thoughts.”
“At the moment we’ve got Cauley and Lasse at the top of the pitch, so at the moment those two are our options and Cauley is a very good footballer, an incredible person as well, so he certainly adds to our group right now.”
A Striker Lacking Goals
Woodrow started his career with Luton before being snapped up by Fulham, for whom he played six games in the Premier League and 49 in the Championship.
During his time at Craven Cottage, the striker enjoyed loan spells with Southend United, Burton Albion, Bristol City and Barnsley followed before the former England Under-21 international joined the Tykes on a permanent deal.
He helped the South Yorkshire club win promotion to the Championship during the 2018-19 campaign in which he scored 16 goals in 31 league matches.
A high-profile move to the Hatters followed but the striker struggled for goals and has scored just six times in 78 appearances for the club. He played 24 times for Luton in the Premier League and scored once in the top flight.
Through his club career, Woodrow has scored 46 goals in England’s second tier having made 237 appearances with a best scoring return of 16 during Barnsley’s League One promotion-winning season in 2018-19.
Writer’s View
Interest from a higher division in a striker who has not scored more than four goals in a season since 2021 is perhaps surprising.
New Middlesbrough boss Rob Edwards has worked with Woodrow at Luton but for a club that relieved Michael Carrick of his duties due to a lack of promotion, this looks a strange move.
