Burton Albion rejected a bid in excess of £1m for Saint Kitts and Nevis international Tyrese Shade in the January transfer window.
Several Brewers players were in high demand in the last month, but this latest revelation about Shade has attracted the highest offer.
Burton are no strangers to fighting at the bottom end of the League One standings, having pulled off some truly incredible escapes in recent seasons.
According to Sporting Director Richard Dorman, who was speaking to BBC Radio Derby last night, the East Staffordshire outfit stood firm as they battle against the drop once again this campaign.
“We needed to decline because we knew what we needed to do to have the best team for the rest of the season.
“It’s a lot of money, but also being relegated to League Two would cost us a lot of money. And for the whole project, for the fans and community, that would be a disaster.”
Shade has scored five times in 23 league appearances this season, in his debut campaign at the Brewers and at this level. The former Leicester City winger enjoyed successful loans away from the Foxes with Walsall and Swindon Town in League Two, but ultimately dropped into the fifth tier with Eastleigh last term.
An excellent campaign for the Spitfires, scoring 14 times and recording eight assists in the National League, saw the Hampshire outfit receive a club record transfer from the League One Brewers. They had previously held firm earlier in the window, turning down several offers, but were unable to reject Burton’s final advance.
With Shade just six months into a two-year deal, Burton were never in any position to need to sell one of their star performers, particularly at this point in their season. While they have dropped back into the bottom four positions in League One, they are in a much better position than last season, when Gary Bowyer’s side appeared cut adrift in the relegation places.
“We went into the window knowing we needed to strengthen the group, not sell somebody and have to replace them,” Dorman continued.
“We wanted crazy money if someone was going to change that plan, and nobody was ready to offer that, which means we need to stick to the plan to keep our place in League One.”
Burton Stand Firm
As mentioned above, Shade wasn’t the only Burton player attracting offers in this window. Bradford City were believed to be chasing striker Jake Beesley, alongside third-tier rivals Luton Town. Burton also knocked back advances for Udoka Godwin-Malife, as they try to give themselves the best possible chance of third-tier survival for another season.
A lot of the frustration this term has come from the Brewers’ ability to take points off the top sides, but then struggle against teams around them in the table. Their point against Cardiff City last Saturday means they have taken four points from six against the table-topping Bluebirds, with the same return from two meeting with Huddersfield Town. Further victories over Bradford City and Bolton Wanderers have given them the tagline of ‘Robin Hood’, taking from the rich and giving to the poor.
One such encounter against a relegation rival comes tomorrow lunchtime against Port Vale, with the Brewers drawing against the ten-men Valiants back in August. Burton have also dropped points against Rotherham United, while two December defeats to Wigan Athletic currently have the Latics outside the bottom four places on goal difference.
But the East Staffordshire outfit are a different animal in the second half of the season. And it would be extremely naïve to rule them out of another season in League One.